Alice Porter 7/15/18 Alice Porter 7/15/18

Barcelona on 35mm Film

Alice Porter 7/4/18 Alice Porter 7/4/18

June 2018 Favourites

I thought I'd share some things that I've been loving throughout June and maybe make this a monthly thing. Quite a few of these things I mention I actually started using in May but have grown to love throughout June. Also, just a quick disclaimer, this bag is not one of my favourites as I only bought it last week but I just thought it made a cool background. So, with that, here are my favourites from the month of June:

1. My Burberry Perfume

I recently rediscovered this perfume after getting home from UNI and having a big clear out. I knew I still had it's box but I thought the perfume was long gone so I was really excited to discover that I had half the bottle left. I’ve been using it a lot recently and, although it reminds me of the winter a bit because it was a Christmas present, it’s definitely a classic scent that can be worn at any time of the year. And I really like the packaging too, which is always important.

2. Francessca Woodman

When my friend Maisie came to visit for a day out in Liverpool, we went to an exhibition on the phtoography of Francessca Wooodman at the Tate Liverpool and it was incredible. I’d never heard of Woodman beforehand but I’ve become obsessed with her work ever since this exhibition. Her photography is all black and white and shot on film so it’s provided me with a lot of inspiration and I’m definitely hoping to shoot on black and white film soon! There are a lot of elements of fashion photography in her work which I really like as well. You should definitely take a look at her work if you haven’t already and, if you’re in the Liverpool area, go to the exhibition at the Tate!

3. This Works Deep Sleep Pillow Spray

I bought this on the plane on the way to Corfu and I’ve been loving it so much. Going to bed often makes me feel really anxious because nighttime is when many of my more panicky moments have come on. So a really relaxing bedtime routine is essential for me. I’ve been using essential oils all year to help me sleep and have wanted to invest in this sleep spray for a while now but the price tag put me off, so buying it duty-free felt like the best time to do so. It has really helped me sleep and the ritual in itself makes me feel relaxed so it was definitely worth spending the money on. I didn’t really like the smell at first but it’s definitely grown on me and I really like having a smell that I associate with sleep and relaxation.

4. Le Specs Sunglasses

These sunglasses have been another rediscovery of mine as I bought them over 3 years ago now and haven’t worn them for the past couple of summers. But they’re my only pair of black sunglasses and probably my biggest pair too so they’re really great for those days when I don’t want anyone to see my face. The lenses are also much more protective from the sun than some of my other pairs which means they’re perfect for sunbathing, so I’ve been wearing them 24/7 on holiday and during this heatwave.

5. Missha SPF

I bought this spf for my holiday as the SPF I use throughout the year is only SPF30 and it isn’t waterproof, so it wasn’t really going to work for a beach/pool holiday in a hot country. This one is SPF45 and totally waterproof, smells really nice and doesn’t do any damage to my oily, acne-prone skin. I am so impressed by it! When I was in Corfu, sunbathing and swimming in 30 degree heat all day, I only applied it twice a day and my face didn’t burn once, which is a bit of a miracle as I always seem to burn my face on holiday! This brand is actually a Korean one and has definitely got me thinking about buying more Korean skincare products as this one is seriously amazing.

6. Alex Monroe Necklace

This necklace has been a firm favourite throughout the month of June. I picked it up at a sample sale Alex Monroe held at Foundation Coffee in Manchester for an absolute steal of £25. I'm trying to invest in my necklaces more as I wear them every day which means necklaces that aren't real gold fade so easily. This is the start of this investing and a good one if I do say so myself!

Let me know if you enjoy these types of posts and if you'd like to see more! This will be my last blog post until next Friday now as this Friday I'm heading to Barcelona for 5 days and really want to make the most of my time there. Plus, I'm currently working pretty much full-time so there isn't as much time for me to write blog posts! But I'll be posting even more than normal over on Instagram because I love a good holiday photo, so see you over there!

Alice Porter 6/29/18 Alice Porter 6/29/18

Why I Love Film Photography

Film photography is something I got into a couple of years ago and I absolutely adore it. There's nothing quite like dropping a roll of film off somewhere and feeling the excitement (and the fear that the camera shop will mess it up) of getting it back to see all these photos and memories. In a digital age where you can get most things with the click of your finger and make everything look perfect, there's something so refreshing about having to wait for your photos and not being able to agonise over them during and after taking them.

People often find the fact I use a film camera very strange, with questions on it ranging from 'who still uses film?' and 'what's the point?' I'm hoping this blog post will show those of you who are little skeptical about film how great it is and maybe even convince you to give it a go yourself. After going through multiple disposable cameras and loving the photos I took from them (and the novelty of having printed out photos) I decided it might be time to move on to a film camera because, not only is it cheaper than buying multiple disposable cameras but the photo quality is obviously better too. I asked for any old film camera for Christmas from my parents, after my researching came to no avail, and ended up with one that, looking back on it now, was actually pretty good- good job Mum! If you're wondering it was the Olympus Superzoom 700XB- it lasted me about a year and I got some great photos with it, but it unfortunately broke after that just as I arrived in Rome, which I was absolutely gutted about as I was so excited for the photos I was going to take on that trip. That is probably the worse thing about film photography, how unreliable it can be. Film cameras are no longer being made so you're always going to be using a second-hand camera which means they are prone to breakages. This is something that comes part and parcel with all the good things about film photography and I still think it's worth it. After all (most of) the cameras aren't expensive, (I've spent as little as £10 on one and as much as £40 on another) this one in particular cost around £25 I think. And these little mishaps make getting amazing photos even more exciting.

After this I gave up on film for a few months, not intentionally but because I never got round to buying a new camera. When I did, I bought one for £10 off Depop (the Praktica G8000 autofocus). I only managed to get one roll of film out of this camera because the second roll I took came back blank, which I was so sad about (I might have cried a little bit). I'm not sure if this was my fault or the fault of the camera but to avoid it happening again and because I wanted a better camera anyway, I bought the Olympus MJU II Zoom 170 (what a mouthful). I paid £40 for this camera off eBay, making it the most expensive one yet, but you can definitely see the price difference in the picture quality. For reference, you can see some photos I took on my Praktica camera in this blog post from my trip to Berlin and photos I took on the Olympus camera in this blog post from Corfu and this one with lots of random photos. I've been loving using my new camera and, since buying it 2 months ago, I've already gone through 2 rolls of 36 exposure film, which is a lot for me!

Anyway enough about the quality and the cameras, I want to talk about why I go through all of the trauma involved with film (broken cameras, empty rolls etc.) and why I love it despite and because of these aspects. As I mentioned, shooting on film just feels so refreshing. Having printed out photos (and seeing them before you see them on a phone screen) is such a novelty and something that will always make me feel so happy. I actually started putting them all in scrapbooks last year which I know will be amazing to look back on- note to self: must continue with that soon. The spontaneity of taking photos with a film camera is another reason why I love it. Whether I'm taking a photo of a scenery, friends or someone else is taking a photo of me, it feels so good to take the photo and leave it at that, with no feelings of dissatisfaction because you have no idea what the photo looks like. By the time I get the photos developed I've usually forgot about most of the photos I took as well and they always come as such a nice surprise, both because of the memories and how the photos actually look. Which takes me to the main reason I love film, and the reason I think why most people shoot on film, how the photos look! A film photo is so distinguishable in my opinion and I can't even describe why I love the way it looks so much apart from saying that it looks real. I don't know if this makes any sense but photos taken using film always feel so authentic and that's what I probably love about them the most!

People are definitely starting to appreciate film photography more and more and if you're thinking about getting a film camera, I'd definitely recommend doing so! They're all easy to use and you could always start with a cheaper one if you're not sure if it's something you'll carry on with. One thing I will mention is the expenses involved in getting photos developed, which are steep. It ranges from about £10-£15 to get a roll of film developed (if you want them on a CD and the prints) which is why, up until now, I've only shot maximum of 5 rolls a year. But now I'm coming to realise just how much I love film photography, I'm hoping to start doing it more frequently. Because £10 a month doesn't seem like that much for photos I love and will (hopefully) cherish forever.

The photos here are ones that were on the same roll of film as my Corfu pictures and I thought this would be the perfect way to share them. All of these photos came out so well from the quality to the colours and they're some of my favourites because of that and the moments they capture. I hope this blog post has inspired you to order a film camera and I hope you're enjoying my film content as I'm hoping there's going to be a lot more of it! If you're looking for more film content definitely check out Lizzy's blog Shot From The Street. She is the queen of film photography and is consistently creating some incredible content with film, always inspiring me. Let me know in the comments or over on social media if you have any questions about shooting on film (although I'm definitely no expert) or if there's anything specific you'd like to see on my blog film-wise!

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Alice Porter 6/27/18 Alice Porter 6/27/18

My Life On 35mm Film #1 | Parklife, A Day Out In Liverpool and An Anniversary Date Night

This post and imagery is based on Lizzy Hadfield's, of Shot From The Street, 'My Week on 35mm Film' series.

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Alice Porter 6/24/18 Alice Porter 6/24/18

Goodbye For Now, Manchester | Reflecting On My First Year of University

I've now officially finished my first year of university which is a very weird feeling as this year has flown by and it doesn't seem so long ago that I was moving into my little room in halls. This year has brought lots of ups and downs but, looking back on it, I know I definitely made the right decision with what I chose to study and the university I chose to study at and I have had a really good experience. So I thought I'd talk a little bit about the best and the worst parts of my first year at UNI, what I've learnt (other than the fact that there's only so many Jane Austen books you can read until you begin to want to bang your head against a wall every time you turn a page) and how I feel different since last September. I wasn't sure about the cliche that university is 'the best years of your life' back in November when my mental health was at a low, but I really do feel now that first year truly has been one of the best years of my life, because of it's difficult times and the things I've learnt from them and, of course, because of all the people I've met, the things I've done and the books I've read. The photos included are taken in my favourite area of Manchester, the Northern Quarter, with some of Manchester's signature graffiti, which I thought were apt for this post.

Freshers week was a weird one for me, as it probably is for everyone, but, really, it felt like freshers lasted for the first two months of university and they were probably two of the best. The novelty of being in a new city and constantly meeting new people was great and any sense of homesickness hadn't really kicked in yet so I was really able to soak everything up in a positive way. I was also really excited about my course as, at this point, it essentially just consisted of reading lots of fiction, listening to people talk about it, and discussing it, which really didn't feel like work to me.

November and December were probably the shakiest periods of my university experience, as I spent most of my time writing essays and less time socialising and the homesickness really started to kick in. It was difficult but it also taught me how to be resilient by myself and, although it didn't feel like it at the time, helped me to become more independent. It was also a time where a lot of the foundations of my current friendships were set, despite everything that was going on in my head, so, really, it was an important period of university for me. And, of course, it was Christmas, my favourite time of the year, which meant making the most of everything Manchester's Christmas scene has to offer from the Christmas Markets to seeing 'Nativity!' at The Palace (a highlight of my year- truly a masterpiece.)

After some much-needed time at home with my family and a couple of weeks of revision, I went back to UNI feeling much better about myself in January and one of the first things I did was sign myself up to the university's counselling service, which helped me immensely and allowed me to enjoy semester two so much more than semester one whilst being in a really good mental place. Whereas the first semester's socialising activities consisted mostly of going out and drinking, I was now socialising in lots of different ways too, which was definitely a really positive thing. With the strike period during February and March came a period of uneasiness as there was nothing forcing me to leave my room and see people but it also allowed me to socialise at different times meaning I could do different things, get some extra hours at work (I worked as a Secondary English Tutor at high schools around Manchester for pretty much the whole year) and spend some more time on my extra-curricular activities, which is when this blog started coming into the works.

The post-strike period is a bit of a blur to be honest but I think it mostly consisted off doing lots of reading, writing essays and spending time with friends and then, before I knew it, I was back home for Easter for a few weeks. This was the period when I actually started my blog and since then, I've been feeling constantly inspired, if also constantly busy. I went back to UNI for a few weeks and juggled probably the most work I've had all year with essays to write, exams looming, lots of extra tutoring hours and writing for my blog 3 times a week but I feel like I managed pretty well and the fact that I was feeling a lot more content in myself and with the people and places around me definitely helped me to de-stress. I then spent a week in Corfu, which I won't go on about because social media has definitely seen enough of that trip, came back to sit my exam and before I knew it it was my final week of first year. This week feels like it was the best yet because Love Island started. No, I'm joking it wasn't because of that although watching Love Island with my friends in eachother's rooms was definitely a highlight of the week and it really was the best week of first year for me. I spent the entire week with my friends and finished it off by going to Parklife, which was one of my favourite weekends and festivals in so long. I said it on my Instagram but it was the best way to end my first year at UNI because it was so much fun. But also because drinking and 'partying' are things that usually make me feel very anxious but it was a totally anxiety-free weekend, which made me feel so happy and proud of myself. The fact that my first year ended in the best way possible makes me feel so optimistic for the rest of my time at UNI.

I'm home now and have been for a couple of weeks and I'm already missing my friends and university generally. Although I'm definitely going to make the most of this summer, I have a new job that I'm loving and have some plans to go away, it's such a nice feeling to know I'm already looking forward to going back to UNI in September because 7 months ago I couldn't have imagined myself feeling this way. I absolutely love studying English Literature, feel so lucky to have met some amazing people and Manchester is such a vibrant and exciting place to be (even if Liverpool will always have my heart). I've learnt so much about myself this year, mostly how obsessed I am with working hard and being busy which, although does carry some negativity which I'm trying to let go of, has made this year very worthwhile and meant I truly have got lots of shit done. With this though, I've realised that grades don't mean everything and have made myself busy in lots of areas of my life, not just UNI, thanks to the reassuring mantra of the student, 'first year doesn't count'. This has allowed me to expand myself in lots of different ways but has also improved my mental health so much and I'm now in the best place I've been in a long, long time.

I'm sure the next two years of university will fly by and so I'm determined to make the most of them in every way. I'd especially like to take advantage of all the wonderful things Manchester has to offer next year as one thing I haven't done enough during first year is explore the city. But, as I said, I have a few months till I'll be back- living in a house not halls (yay!)- so I'm putting that to one side for now so I can enjoy my summer. I hope you've enjoyed this post and I'd love to hear about your university experiences in the comments!

Top- New Look

Jeans- COW Vintage

Shoes- Primark (bought in the last 2 months so should still be available in store)

Bag- ASOS

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Alice Porter 6/22/18 Alice Porter 6/22/18

Dressing Up For Comfort Lovers

I'm back today with the last of my photos from my trip to Corfu, which I'm feeling happy about because, to be totally honest, I'm getting a bit sick of them, so I'm sure you are too! But I do love this outfit and this dress, which you might have also seen on my post about dressing for yourself. Here, it's styled a little bit (read, a lot) differently in a much more feminine, formal way. It's probably the most 'dressed up' outfit I wore in Corfu and editing and looking through these photos made me think about dressing up and why I've perhaps done it less over the years. I came to the conclusion that the reason this is the case is because I am, in fact, most comfortable when my clothes feel comfortable (makes sense right?). But sometimes dressing up is necessary and I do really enjoy it when I've got the right outfit. So in today's post, I'm going to give you some tips on formal dressing if, like me, your clothes being physically comfortable is something you're rarely willing to give up, based on how I've styled this outfit.

1. Ditch the High Heels

It honestly baffles me how and why people still wear high heels. I mean, no disrespect, in fact I have a lot of respect for people who were high heels regularly because HOW? For about a 2-3 year period, I would wear high heels every single weekend (and when I say high, I mean anything ranging from 4-6 inches) but I feel like I've well and truly got that out my system because now I avoid them like the plague. I have very wide and blister-prone feet so high heels and I just don't go together and whenever I did used to wear them, my nights would often be ruined by ridiculous amounts of pain and, if they weren't, the next day 100% would be.

So, my tip is to simply ditch the high heels. I don't think I've worn any in well over a year and I can vouch for the fact that nights out, and any occasion where I would otherwise wear them, are much better now. You don't have to be tall to wear flats (I'm 5"4) and people care about whats on your feet a lot less than you think. Alternatively, try a pretty flat shoe, maybe something pointed to make it a little bit formal or something with a slingback. Those types of shoes are appropriate for most occasions and all-year round. If you would feel better wearing a little bit of a heel, go for a heeled boot with a platform in the winter for less formal occasions- these are much comfier than any type of court shoe. In the summer, sandals with a small chunky heel (just like the ones I'm wearing in this photo) are formal, comfy and season-appropriate so you can't really ask for more! I'm also a fan of (controversial opinion ahead) the Mary-Jane and my patent, slightly heeled pair have been a great, comfortable replacement for heels (I wore them in this post here).

Here are some examples of the shoes that are available to buy:

The Pointed Slingback:

This Red Mango Pair (£15)

This Gold ASOS Pair (£14)

This Simple Black ModCloth Pair (£22)

The Heeled Boot:

This Black Velvet MissGuided Pair That I Already Own (£17)

This Red Faith Pair (£41.30)

This Boohoo Thigh High Pair (£38)

The Heeled Sandal:

My Topshop Sandals (£29)

The Mary-Jane:

This Office Pair That Are Very Similar To My Old ASOS Pair (£32)

2. The Humble Slip Dress

I truly believe that the slip dress is a comfort lover's ultimate wardrobe piece, it's certainly mine! Not only are they so versatile and can be dressed up and down for so many different occasions and seasons but they're just about the comfiest style of dress ever. They usually don't require a bra, even for bigger boobs because the style of dress isn't figure hugging whatsoever and you can eat as much as you want in them without having to undo any buttons and without anyone seeing your lovely full belly- they honestly feel like wearing a socially acceptable nightie. Have I sold you on them? I hope so!

I usually go for a mini slip dress worn with any of the aforementioned shoes, which always makes a great and simple outfit for a night out. But here I'm obviously wearing one with more of a midi length, a first for me! I think the midi length makes the outfit even more formal and I think this polka dot number might even be wedding-appropriate. I can't recommend slip dresses to you enough if you're all about being comfortable at more formal events, and especially if you're number-one wedding/event activity is raiding the buffet table!

Here are some of my favourites:

This Sequin Mini For All Of Your Partying Needs (£36)

This Sexy Satin Midi For Your More Formal Events (£32)

For some reason the dress I'm wearing in these photos isn't and never has been on the Zara website but for other polka dot midi slip dresses see here, here and here.

3. It's All In The Accessories

I wear gold jewellery with pretty much all of my outfits. Namely, I'm always wearing gold layered necklaces. I think they add something interesting to every outfit but they're especially great for making an outfit more formal. By co-ordinating my gold necklaces with the gold hardware on my shoes in this outfit, it just looks like I've put that little bit more effort in and ties the outfit together. I also think hoop earrings are a great way to dress up an outfit although my lobe piercings are still recovering from having them pierced in March (yes that was 3 months ago and no I'm not happy about how slow my ears are recovering) so I couldn't wear mine with this outfit although I do have a beautiful Anthropolige pair waiting for me.

A bag can also make an outfit more formal and interesting but, due to limited space in my suitcase and a comparatively poor bag collection, I just stuck with this plain black over the shoulder bag. Although worn as a clutch it probably would have looked much more formal. Clutches aren't really my thing though as they're endlessly impractical and so instead, maybe try a bag that co-ordinates with your jewellery (i.e. a gold or silver one) or a beaded bag.

Some Gold Jewellery I Have My Eye On/Own*:

This Lucy Williams X Missoma Fang Choker (£95)

This Lucy Williams X Missoma Beaded Coin Necklace (£145)

This Alex Monroe Bunny Necklace (£135)

These Anthropologie Gold Hoop Earrings (£38)

Some Formal Bags That Aren't Clutches:

This Zara Black Beaded Bag (£29.99)

This Anthropologie Sparkly Metallic Bag (£48.95)

I hope you've enjoyed this post and that it's been helpful! Formal dressing can be one of the most difficult styling tasks so I hope I've provided you with some ways to make it easier and, most importantly, more comfortable. I'll see you on Sunday with a new post with some photos that aren't from Corfu (can you believe it?) but until then, you can find me on Instagram where I'm active on a daily basis @aliceporter16.

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Alice Porter 6/20/18 Alice Porter 6/20/18

Copying VS. Inspiration

Today I want to talk a little bit about the difference between copying and inspiration because there's definitely a fine line between the two. This fine line can often be the reason why people are scared to take inspiration from people, especially in the age of social media where everyone is free to scrutinise and criticise your actions from behind the protection of their computer screen. I often see bloggers and vloggers with a bigger following complain about people copying their ideas and I can imagine that this is so infuriating. If I were to create a series on YouTube, for example, and put hard work into the logistics behind it for someone else to totally steal the idea without any acknowledgement of it being mine, I can't even imagine how I'd feel. But that is straight-up copying. You can't really view it any other way. But if, continuing with this example, said copier was to acknowledge that they took the idea from me (this is totally hypothetical by the way, I don't even make YouTube videos), would that be taking inspiration rather than copying? See what I said about the fine line?

The photos included with this post are actually what gave me the idea for the topic of discussion because I was very much inspired to create this outfit by the blogger, Samantha Maria, someone who I always find myself taking inspiration from as I have spoken about before in my post on styling red and pink. I saw her wear a similar outfit during her trip to Dubai- you can see how she styled the outfit here. Because I put together this outfit based on the inspiration I took from Sammi and because the outfits are similar, I thought this would be an interesting sort of 'case study' to dissect the differences between taking inspiration and copying stylistically.

Comparing my outfit to Sammi's, they look extremely similar. You might be surprised that I'm actually wearing totally different pieces by different brands to Sammi. But I think even if I was wearing the exact top and skirt as her, this still wouldn't necessarily be a case of copying. I think that's because I've styled the outfit to make it my own.

Sammi's outfit very much gives me 'summer in the city' vibes, whereas mine, I think, is much more 'summer on the beach'. This, in part is to do with the locations that we both wore these outfits in but it was also a conscious decision on my behalf to wear this outfit on holiday so I could change it up from hers a little bit. I also think the colour schemes of the outfit are significantly different considering we're both wearing black and white polka dots and denim. Sammi has gone for a monochrome colour scheme whereas I have added some colour into my outfit. I mainly did so because monochrome isn't really my style. Another way in which I made my outfit my own is by using a natural brown coloured straw bag rather than a black one, as Sammi did. Again, this was to ensure it had those summer holiday vibes and to change up the colours of the outfit a little bit. Styling my hair in a loose bun rather than in a messy ponytail and hoop earrings also changed the outfit to one that is a little bit more relaxed and holiday appropriate.

'Making it your own' is probably the second most important thing in order to cross the line from copying to taking inspiration, the first most important thing being acknowledging the original source of inspiration. Acknowledging that you've taken inspiration from someone removes any tension from the situation and, usually, is flattering for the person who has inspired you. People who copy usually are trying to make something that is someone else's look like their own, so by acknowledging that this thing, whether it's an outfit idea or anything else, isn't your own, you remove yourself from that category, in my opinion.

Taking inspiration is such an important thing for me creatively whether that's for my blog design, photography or, usually, my style. I've recently got very into Pinterest and it has been providing me with so much inspiration that hopefully will help to improve my blog content! I have boards for inspiration for each season of the year, a moodboard, a board of imagery that I love and one for photography inspiration (that mostly consists of Francessca Woodman's photos after seeing an exhibition on her work at the weekend). So far, it's been really positive for me creatively and is also a really good way of pinpointing (see what I did there?) where I'm taking inspiration from so I can go back there for more. If you're interested in seeing what's inspiring me, you can take a look at my Pinterest page here!

I hope this post has showed you how beneficial taking inspiration from others can be and maybe helped you to figure out how to do so in a positive way for everyone involved! Sammi actually shared a photo of this outfit from Instagram on her stories as part of her #sammisstylediaries which was really nice because it kind of proves that you can be directly and obviously inspired by someone without causing offence and maybe even flatter them in the process.

I really recommend following Sammi (I mean, if you aren't already) because she is killing it this year, especially on YouTube! Here are some links to her different platforms:

Sammi's Blog

Sammi's Instagram

Sammi's Youtube

Top- ASOS (limited stock, Sammi's Topshop version is here)

Skirt- Pull & Bear (old, similar here)

Bag- Zara

Shoes- Mango

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Alice Porter 6/17/18 Alice Porter 6/17/18

Boulevard Du Soleil Couchant

This outfit is probably my favourite out of all of the outfits I wore in Corfu so I'm really excited to finally share it on my blog. Sorry if you feel as though I'm dragging the holiday content on a little bit but I've had a busy few weeks since I got back and so didn't have time to share the blog posts all at once but I do want to share all of the blog posts I planned because I like how the photos have come out for the most part! But I promise there's only one more week of content from Corfu coming up. Although, I have just booked a trip to Barcelona in 3 weeks so there will be more holiday content before you know it.

Anyway, as mentioned this happens to be one of my favourite outfits I wore in Corfu and I'm so happy with how the photos have come out. I was actually expecting this to be my least favourite outfit from the trip seeing as it's the most basic, just a t-shirt and a skirt. But maybe that's just what I feel most myself in? I'm also a big fan of colour co-ordination, as you might be able to tell from past outfits I have shared, and baby blue is one of my favourite colours to wear so it's unsurprising how much I love it.

I think the main reason I'm so happy with these photos is the location. Luckily, the hotel we stayed in in Corfu (Gretocel Eva Palace) was so beautiful and had a pastel colour palette of dreams. This particular location was on my route from the beach to my hotel room every day and I was eyeing it up for a while before I took these photos here. Pinky/peachy walls, which are a common feature of Corfu's architecture, along with white railing, wicker chairs and a bit of greenery are my idea of an aesthetic dream and made me feel like I was on the French Riviera during the 1950s. The setting actually feels reminiscent of F. Scott Fitzgerald's Tender Is The Night which, although I personally think is painful plot-wise, provides some beautiful imagery of the south of France in the 1920s.

Speaking of France, you may have noticed the slogan on my top, of which I have dedicated this blog post to, is in French. It's one I picked up from & Other Stories, as you might have seen in my blog post on the new bits in my wardrobe, that I was immediately attracted to because I am always a lover of white T-shirts, anything baby blue and the French language. I obviously had to google translate the writing in the changing rooms to ensure it didn't say something like 'Pizza is life' and was pretty pleased to find out it translated to 'Sunset Boulevard' as I think that's pretty non-offensive and maybe even a little bit cool? The French language has always been something I've wanted to learn as I'm fascinated by it and the culture of France, you might even call me a Francophile! Although my GCSE in French put me off a little bit (2 hours straight weekly of copying from a textbook and equally painstakingly boring tasks was far from enjoyable), it's always been a goal of mine to have a decent understanding of the language. Not only is the language in itself beautifully romantic (a cliche but one that holds lots of truth) but I would love to live in France one day, not forever but for a few months or a year or so and so obviously knowing the language would be necessary. Apart from said GCSE French and inevitably failed attempts to complete DuoLingo, my French language skills don't go very far. Maybe (hopefully) this will be the year when I take this goal of mine a little bit more seriously and attend some real-life classes or something like that. Let me know if you've ever learnt a language independently or in an unconventional way (i.e. not as part of your full-time education) and if you have any tips for doing so as I'd love to hear them!

France seems like such an inspiring place to be creatively and I think spending an extended period of time there, namely in Paris, would be so good for me. It's something I really hope I'm able to do when I finish university. I have considered a year abroad but if I was to live there I'd want to dedicate most of my time to being creative in ways that don't involve my degree so I've ruled that out. But I hope I'm able to live out this dream one day, learning the language would certainly be a good start!

Anyway I thought everything in these photos came together quite nicely, from the French slogan tee with the Riviera esq location, to the vintage style sunglasses and skirt with the old-fashioned feel colours and style of this part of the hotel. I'm now off to play, if you can call it that, on DuoLingo in hopes of fulfilling my Parisian dreams!

Top- & Other Stories

Skirt- Topshop (it's now £15 in the sale!)

Bag- Zara

Sunglasses- Primark (similar here)

Shoes- New Look (old)

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Alice Porter 6/15/18 Alice Porter 6/15/18

The Best Holiday Reads

I'm back with a bit of a different post today, although it is the type of post that I was planning on writing a lot about on my blog, a post about books. As I've just been on holiday (did I mention that I went to Corfu?) and it's summer holiday season, I thought I would create a post with my holiday reading recommendations. I don't know about you, but when I go on a beach/pool holiday, I spend 80% of my time during the day reading (the other 20% is spent eating and sleeping) and so I'm always prepared with lots of books. I find it a little bit scary taking books on holiday because I'm always worried that I won't like a book but will have to carry on reading it or, even worse, won't have anything to read at all. If you feel the same way, this post might be useful in providing you some trustworthy recommendations so you're not left in this position. My recommendations are split up into three sections, each with some books that I've already read. I hope you find this post helpful and be sure to let me know if you'd like to hear more about my opinion on any of the books or, if you live near me, if you'd like to borrow one of the books from me! Here are my categories...

1. The Page-Turner

This category is probably the one that most people's holiday book of choice falls into. Page-turners are easy-going, addictive and offer some serious escapism, which is perfect for a relaxing holiday where you're going to be spending a lot of time reading. I always bring book like this on holiday with me because I tend to read more 'serious' and 'literary' books throughout the year. I'm very aware that this sounds snobby but I can assure you it's not at all. I HATE book snobbery and people who refuse to consider any book as worthy if it hasn't been nominated for a Man Booker or was published post-20th century because I think, not only is this attitude offensive to those who read these books and, in many ways, inherently classist, but there's nothing wrong with reading a book purely for entertainment purposes and nothing else. Plus, these books are often interesting analytically and contextually because of their genre. Anyway, that was quite a tangent. But yes, I always read a book like this on holiday because I do tend to reach for more literary books throughout the year because they're usually the ones that have been on my reading list for the longest and I'm really eager to read and because my reading time is limited during the year, I really have to narrow down my choices. Anyway, here are some of my favourite page-turners to devour on holiday this year:

My Number One Choice- The Millennium Series by Stieg Larsson

This series is better known as the one that starts with The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. This trilogy is often hailed as the biggest page-turner and if you read it, you'll find out why. I won't even try and explain the plot because it's beyond complicated but they are crime novels and they are so gripping. They're also pretty long so are perfect for your holiday as they will take you a while to get through if you're just reading a chapter every night. I'm currently half way through the last novel and am thoroughly enjoying it as a form of escapism (along with my other favourite escapist activity, Love Island). A fourth book has recently been added to the series written by a different author, as Larsson died before the books were published. I don't really know how I feel about that and whether I read it or not will depend on how much of a cliff-hanger the ending of the third novel is.

Other Page-Turners I Like (Perhaps More Literary Than I Previously Mentioned)-

The Power by Naomi Alderman
Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie
The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes
1984 by George Orwell

2. The Classic Novel That You've Never Got Round To Reading

As mentioned, a holiday is a time where lots of reading can be done quickly. So it makes sense to read that book that you've always wanted to read but have been putting off due to something like it's length. You might think that a classic book is a little bit of a heavy choice for a relaxing holiday but I can guarantee that you'll enjoy it a lot more if you read it all in one go, rather than over a month or so at home, so a holiday is the perfect chance to do so.

My Number One Choice- The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

I'm choosing this purely because it's my favourite classic book and I've read it on holiday a few times before. There are many more chunkier books that perhaps might be a better choice for your holiday but this one is short and sweet and will certainly allow for other holiday reads if the thought of taking just one classic on holiday scares you.

Other Classic Novels I Like:

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen
Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
Animal Farm by George Orwell
1984 by George Orwell
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
Lolita by Vladamir Nabokov
Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys

3. The Non-Fiction Book That Makes You Think

Once again, this sounds a bit heavy for a holiday. But these are the types of books that need to be gobbled up in one go in order for them to have their full effect. Putting them down and coming back to them just won't make you think as much as reading them in the space of a few days will. Plus, reading a book like this might be something you've been putting off so this is a good time to pack it in your suitcase, leaving you with no other choice than to read it.

My Number One Choice- Sapiens by Yual Noah Harari

I read this book on holiday last year and it's honestly so brilliant. It's a reflection on the history of the entire world. Educational and thoughtful, it is the ultimate book to make you think. If you read this on holiday, you will come back home feeling differently about the world and knowing more about it than you did before. I'm looking forward to reading the second instalment to this book on holiday this year!

Other Non-Fiction Books To Make You Think:

The Anxiety Solution by Chloe Brotheridge
Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde
I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
Women & Power by Mary Beard
We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay
A Room Of One's Own by Virginia Woolf
Revolution by Russell Brand

I hope you've found some reading inspiration for any upcoming holidays in this post! All of the books I've mentioned I have read and can thoroughly recommend but do do some extra research on any of the ones that I haven't explained if they sound like they interest you. Happy holidays and happy reading!

Alice Porter 6/13/18 Alice Porter 6/13/18

The Pressures of Perfectionism

Welcome (back?) to my blog! So sorry that I haven't been as regular with posting recently. With a holiday, exams and post-exams celebrating, I've not had much time to sit down and write. But I have 40 minutes till tonight's Love Island so I have plenty of time to write this post and hopefully I will be back to posting on Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays weekly now.

One of the reasons I've let myself stop posting so regularly is because it's another way of getting over my perfectionism. I'm definitely not a perfectionist in every area of my life but in the areas where I set myself goals, I most definitely am. I'm most regularly setting myself goals within UNI and blogging, so I thought I'd talk a little bit about the pressures of perfectionism in each of these parts of my life.

I decided to discuss this topic in a post with these photos because I very much had an 'ideal image' in mind before shooting them, as I do with most planned shoots, and the outcome wasn't as good as I had hoped. This is partly because we were in a rush whilst taking them but also because they were taken on a busy street in Corfu where lots of people were giving me strange looks and I'm still not totally comfortable with shooting in front of strangers, especially when the people who I'm with/are taking the photos feel the same way.

I was kind of inspired to use this backdrop for my photos by Lucy Williams' recent campaign with Mango. Obviously my photos haven't come out half as good as hers because I didn't have a professional photographer shooting the photos, nor did I have a full day (or maybe even days) to perfect them, plus the backing and support of a major company. Considering the circumstances in which these photos were taken, I should be happy with them and I am after thinking about it! But this is just an example of one of the ways in which I hold myself up to ridiculous standards (and a segway into the rest of the post).

So, personally, I am mostly a perfectionist academically. This is something I've talked about previously in my post on work-life balance as well as my post on my experience with anxiety, so I won't really go into it too much. But it is interesting to consider how much of the pressure I used to put on myself (and still do sometimes) academically is really created by myself rather than influenced by social factors. The pressure I put on myself during A-Levels was mostly generated by people telling me how difficult they would be and perhaps maintained by the feeling that I would inevitably be letting people down if I didn't do well. Although it really was me and, mostly, no-one else putting this pressure on myself, I think it was created by my social situation i.e. the fact that doing well in A-Levels is seen as the be-all and end-all during sixth form. My first-year of UNI has allowed me to be a lot more laid back because rather than being told that grades mean everything, we are instead told that grades don't matter this year, which has been endlessly helpful for me.

Moving onto university (I'm on a roll with the segways today), this post was actually inspired by conversations I've had with various people about the social pressure of university, particularly inspired by one with my friend Lucy at Parklife festival this weekend. You might be surprised by the amount of people who have dropped out of university this year based on the appearance of their Instagram feeds. Social media definitely suggests that EVERYONE is having a great time at university because, as my friend Katy said, no one is going to post a picture of themselves during one of the (probably) many times that they are crying in their bedroom.

First year of university is difficult for most people but because we are constantly told that it should be 'the best years of our lives' and that we should be extremely social, there's lots of guilt attached to feelings of sadness, boredom and loneliness at university and I think the pressure to be perfect is extremely prevalent here. I'm glad I've been able to share some of my more difficult experiences with university on my blog because it is so isolating seeing people with lots of new friends going out every night on Instagram, when you're spending your 5th night on a run eating leftover bolognese and writing an essay on a Jane Austen novel (I've written on three Austen texts this year which might just have put me off her forever).

But no one, that I know of, is really having an amazing time all the time so just remember that. I'm definitely going to be making more of an effort in second year to talk about some of my more difficult moments at university on Instagram. Even if I don't post a photo of myself crying in bed- because, quite frankly, I don't want to do that and I am 100% sure that no one wants to see it- I might talk a little bit about my shitty week in the caption or on Instagram stories. Not to moan but to prove to anyone who might think that my life is in any way 'perfect' that I have as many shitty times as they do and so they should never feel bad about them or pressured to have to feel better.

My perfectionism is something I'm trying to let go of in all areas of my life and I think I have been able to do so in lots of ways. I'm never going to be totally laid-back and I really don't ever want to be as my motivation and determination has been really good for me in lots of ways. But when it starts to affect my mental health is when I know I've taken it too far and hopefully in ignoring and abandoning any pressures to be perfect I won't have to let it get that far again. My Instagram and Twitter DMs are always open if you want to talk about any of your experiences and if you've gone through anything similar, do get in touch! I hope you've enjoyed this post and that it's reminded you to focus on yourself and ignore any social pressures around you.

Dress- Zara

Bag- Zara

Sunglasses- Mango (No longer available on the website, will update the post if they re-stock them)

Shoes- New Look (old)

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Alice Porter 6/8/18 Alice Porter 6/8/18

1 Shirt 2 Ways

Today I have another post with some photos from Corfu, and there's many more to come so I hope you're enjoying them! I'm sharing a little holiday styling tip that I learnt from Lizzy over at Shot From The Street (the editing of these photos was also inspired by her, specifically her 35mm film posts, which are my favourite blog posts by anyone ever.) I remember reading (or potentially hearing over on her YouTube channel) her talk about packing tactically for pool/beach holidays by taking clothes for the evening that double up as cover-ups to minimise the amount of clothes you take on holiday. Although I'm anything but a light packer, I thought this would be interesting to try.

When I originally bought this dress (it's probably designed as a shirt) from H&M, I thought I would use it purely as a cover-up. Oversized shirts, specifically striped ones, are my go-to pool cover ups as they look so effortless and they genuinely are really easy to wear. But when I tried this on in the changing rooms, I decided that it would also work great in the evening for the more casual nights.

I wore the shirt in the evening on the first night. Firstly because I couldn't wear it as a cover up until I had worn it in the evening and secondly because it was the most casual and comfy evening outfit I had with me and I had been awake since 3am that morning and in airports and on a plane all day. The fact that the evening photos were taken on the first night explains the pale legs anyway. I paired the shirt with black and gold accessories to elevate the look a little bit and these sandals have a little bit of a heel, adding some formality and some necessary height. This bag is really old and probably the most formal black bag I have, which is why I chose to add it to this outfit. Although it would definitely look better with a bag with gold hardware. Obviously, I also wore my trusty gold necklaces (that I could definitely do with re-purchasing) and also added my Casio watch to tie in with the gold elements of the outfit. To avoid flashing the other guests at the hotel on the first night of my stay, I put on a little pair of denim shorts under my dress, which were really more a practicality than an aesthetic choice.

My styling of the shirt as a cover-up is pretty predictable really but how couldn't it be? I paired it with this old blue and pink Urban Outfitters bikini because I'm all about a bit of co-ordination. To add to this, I also wore my pink Warehouse sunnies. It is also paired with my white Bikerenstocks, which I wore during the day every day on holiday.

This shirt is the perfect length as, although it is short for an evening piece, this makes it slightly more sexy, which contrasts nicely with it's more boyish fit. For a cover-up, the length is great too because you can 100% wear it without any shorts, which is something that I had to do with my shorter shirts. I actually bought this shirt in a size 16 to ensure it had the length I wanted so maybe keep that in mind if you are thinking about getting it or any shirt to be worn as a dress.

I hope you've found this post helpful and interesting! I love finding different ways of styling my clothes as I am often guilty of wearing things once and then getting a little bit bored of them, so techniques like this one can really help. I'll be back on Sunday with another blog post but until then, I'd love to hear what your favourite type of holiday cover-up is in the comments.

Shirt- H&M

Evening Outfit:

Shoes- Topshop

Watch- Casio

Bag- Urban Outfitters (old, similar here)

Cover Up Outfit:

Shoes- Birkenstocks

Bikini- Urban Outfitters (old)

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Alice Porter 6/6/18 Alice Porter 6/6/18

Corfu on 35mm Film

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Alice Porter 5/27/18 Alice Porter 5/27/18

Finding A 'Work-Life Balance'

'Work-Life Balance' is a phrase that I've heard used lots since I've started following the lives of bloggers through their blogs themselves, YouTube, Instagram etc. It's something that they often talk about struggling with as because documenting their life is essentially their career, it's difficult to draw a line. Obviously, I am by no means a full-time blogger and I, for the most part, don't really see my blog as work at all- it's a hobby that I enjoy. However, taking pictures, editing HTML (which mostly consists of me watching endless YouTube tutorials) and actually writing blog posts is time-consuming and so adding my blog to the things that I do has made it difficult for me to relax over the past couple of months. It hasn't made me feel crazily stressed but I could feel the amount of time I was spending working taking it's toll on me so I'm trying to take some steps to change that. With studying for a full-time degree, working as an English tutor part-time (which involves lots of planning), having a significant role within the campaign Girls Against, plus running my blog, I often work from 8am-10pm on weekdays with minimal breaks, which is really unhealthy and bad for my mental health. I discussed how work took over my life during my A-Levels in a recent post about my experience with anxiety and I'm determined not to let that happen again this year, even if I do enjoy all of the things I class as 'work' now. So here are some of the things I'm doing to try and ensure I make time for myself:

1. Scheduling in 'holidays'.

People who work a 9-5 job obviously have a given amount of time for their holidays but, although with UNI we are given lots of time off for Christmas, Easter and summer, all of the other things I do continue throughout the year. So I'm trying to give myself official weeks off where I can just totally relax. I can't say I've managed one of these so far but I am planning on scheduling some in over summer and I definitely took a few days off everything during Christmas and Easter, if not a full break, which felt really nice in itself. However, I am currently on holiday in Corfu (as you might be able to tell by these photos), the week before my only UNI exam this semester, which is an attempt to try and force myself not to go overboard with revision. I am also in Corfu because I am not going to turn down a week of sun. I'm doing 2 hours of revision a day (ish) whilst I'm here, one in the afternoon and one in the evening and trying to relax for the rest of the day. I'm also writing blog posts (currently sat on my balcony writing this one) and taking photos for my blog because, as mentioned, I enjoy this and don't find it stressful whatsoever. Although I'm pretty sure this might be the only blog post for this week because I want to make the most of my time here.

2. Taking Weekends Off

This is something I've been trying to do since the beginning of university. I decided that I'd much rather work really hard throughout the week so I can have my weekends to myself. This is in part due to the fact that I mostly see my boyfriend on the weekends and I wanted to make sure I had time to see him but also because I struggle to take evenings off if I know I haven't got everything done that I wanted to do that day and don't enjoy the scheduled 'relaxing time'. Whereas with weekends, once it gets to Friday evening I know that I'm done for that week and anything else will have to wait till Monday. This is, of course, something I won't do during my second and third years of university as my workload grows, and something I don't do 100% of time now, so I will have to find another method of relaxation then, but it works great for now.

3. Making Plans and Sticking To Them

This is a really important one for me because I struggle to relax on my own because I'm always thinking that there's something more productive that I could be doing. However, when I'm with someone else, I know that there's no way I could be doing work at that moment and want to make the most of the time I have with whoever I'm with, so I'm really able to fully relax.

4. Planning My Time

Something I've started doing recently is realistically planning my days hour by hour. This means that usually I really have got everything I wanted to do done by 8pm and can relax for the rest of the night. I'm still a bit rubbish at switching off in the evenings though and often find something else productive to do without even thinking about it. But telling yourself that you're going to stop working at a certain time can be really helpful.

I'm going to leave this post here for today because I am hungry and I can smell the food from the restaurant of my hotel but I hope it helped you think about whether your work-life balance is truly balanced and gave you some tips to help it get there. I'm wearing this skirt from & Other Stories again because I just can't get enough of it along with this top also from & Other Stories, both of which I featured in my last post about what's new in my wardrobe. You've seen the shoes and the bag before but this bag is now back in stock on Zara (linked below)! I'm off to relax and enjoy the rest of the time I have in beautiful Corfu now but keep an eye on my Instagram to see what I'm up to.

Top- & Other Stories

Skirt- & Other Stories

Shoes- New Look (old)

Bag- Zara

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

My Morning Skincare and Beauty Routine (Cruelty Free)

Happy Friday! Today I'm going to be sharing with you my morning skincare and make-up routine. As I've mentioned before, I'm really crappy at make-up so I always go for something natural and simple but I thought I'd share it anyway as I feel like I'm using some products that I love at the moment. I love skincare and find it super interesting but my morning skincare routine is also pretty simple, both for time purposes and because that's what my skin seems to like. My evening skincare routine is much more complicated but I'm sure I'll do a blog post on that soon. In case you're wondering, I have oily, blemish-prone skin but it's in the best condition it's been in in a long time at the moment. Anyway here it is...

1. To start, I'll wet my face with a flannel before using the Glossier Milky Jelly Cleanser- my holy grail product. I've talked about this in detail in my blog post I wrote on the Glossier products that I own but it really is the perfect morning cleanser- so refreshing. If I'm going to be washing my hair that morning, I'll use this in the shower but if not I just wash it off with a flannel, which works fine.

2. Next, I spray my face with the Mario Badescu rosewater. I'm really not sure if this does anything but I love the smell and the feeling of it on my skin. It's so refreshing in the morning and, because my evening skincare routine is quite de-hydrating, it's a good way to really hydrate my skin at the beginning of the day.

3. The final step of my morning skincare routine (I told you it was basic) is this moisturiser from Lush called 'Enzymion'. I've used it for years and, despite trying various other moisturisers, I always come back to it. It's formulated for oily skin which makes it perfect for me and it smells of lemons which makes it really refreshing. It moisturises the skin without making you feel like you've got a heavy moisturiser on, which I like as I hate feeling like I have anything on my face.

4. Moving on to make-up, I've just started using The Ordinary Serum foundation in the shade 1.2N and I'm loving it. It's similar to the Glossier 'Perfecting Skin Tint' but it's a quarter of the price and has much better coverage. I like my coverage to be really light because, as mentioned, I don't like feeling as though I have anything on my face, so on some days when I'm not really doing anything I do prefer the Glossier one. But overall, this is far better priced and covers up any imperfections, unlike the Glossier product. I usually just blend it in with an ELF blending brush.

5. The next step is bronzer although if I have any breakouts I'll use the ELF concealer before this. I use the Urban Decay 'Beached Bronzer' which is buildable and so easy to apply. It's not too dark or too light which means applying it is effortless and it never leaves any brown splodges on the top of my cheekbones.

6. After this I'll either go in with a highlighter or with this Charlotte Tilbury blush stick- more often than not I use this as it's much easier to apply than highlighter and makes for a more natural look. This one is in the shade 'Moon Beach' and it's a kind of coral-y shade that definitely comes with a glow once applied. Super easy to use (can you see a theme here within my routine...) and something I actually get complimented on fairly often, which is always nice! Plus, it smells really good.

7. For someone who is lazy with their make-up, I wear eyeshadow disproportionately often, pretty much every day. I've never been able to do liquid eyeliner and so eyeshadow is the something interesting and varied that I like to add to my make-up routine. My favourite palette for every day is the 'Sweet Peach' palette by Too Faced. It has a variety of different shades but I usually stick to the lighter ones, although I am partial to some glitter. My favourite and most worn shade is 'Bellini', which I'm wearing in these photos, which is a shimmery dark pink shade that I think brings out the blue in my eyes.

8. Another holy grail product for me is the Anastasia Beverly Hills 'Brow Wizz' in soft brown. For some reason that is completely unknown to me, I have random holes in my eyebrows and this brow pencil allows me to fill them in quickly and seamlessly. I also have bushy eyebrows that grow back quicker than I care to pluck them so an eyebrow brush is necessary for me everyday, even when I'm not wearing make-up. The only annoying thing about the 'Brow Wiz' is that the packaging breaks so easily (as you can see here) which means the spoolie brush that comes with it always disappears within the first week of me owning it.

9. For mascara, I *usually* use the Urban Decay 'Perversion' which is cruelty free however I didn't have it with me when I was taking these photos so I'm just using a random tester- sorry about that! I really don't have much to say about it as a mascara anyway apart from that it works and it's cruelty free and vegan, which is enough for me! I honestly don't know what makes a good mascara and usually can't tell one from another.

10. Finally, I use what is perhaps my favourite beauty product, the Glossier 'Balm Dot Com' in the shade/flavour (?) Birthday. It adds a slight shimmer and tastes incredible and is so soothing for my perennially dry lips. I don't usually wear lipstick day-to-day so I just slap a bit of this on and I'm good to go.

I hope you've enjoyed this post despite the fact that I am very apparently not that knowledgable about make-up! I do enjoy doing it and I especially enjoy doing skincare, so expect an evening skincare routine very soon where I can go a bit more into depth about my skin and what works for it. Let me know if you use any of the products I've mentioned and what your holy grail products are in the comments! Also if you are interested in any of the Glossier products I mentioned, you can click here to get 10% off your order!

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Alice Porter 5/13/18 Alice Porter 5/13/18

Dressing For Yourself

Photography by Jenny Gavan.

I've always been an advocate of wearing whatever you want and it's something I've *pretty much* always been comfortable doing. This doesn't mean that I'm always dressed eccentrically and go out of my way to dress differently. But I really could not care less if someone doesn't like what I'm wearing whether that's friends, family or someone on Instagram. It's possibly the only thing I've always been comfortable in because I really do just love clothes- buying them, styling them, talking about them. I know what I like and if I love a piece then I'm going to feel great wearing it.

I remember in high school (well, we wore uniforms but I mean during that period in my life) I would buy things that were perhaps slightly *different* to the norm that my friends and family would look at a little weirdly- never in a malicious way, always politely. The amount of times I've heard the phrase 'I could never pull that off' or 'it suits you but I could never wear that' as a polite way of someone telling me that they don't like what I'm wearing is comical. But, unlike if someone commented on my physical appearance or something I've said, I've never felt embarrassed or upset about the fact that some people don't like what I wear. It's definitely something to do with being able to choose what I wear and using this as a sort of shield to hide the other parts of myself that I'm not so confident about. Sometimes I'll buy a particular shape of dress to hide a bigger part of my body that I'm not totally comfortable with (usually my boobs) or I'll wear a 'party girl' type of outfit for a night out to conceal the fact that I probably am not as comfortable as the people I'm with in a night club. My clothes fill the gaps within me that have formed as a result of the lack of confidence I have in some other parts of myself.

My old blog was initially called 'Style Comes From Within' which I changed, after a couple of years, to 'If You Like It Wear It' (a little cringey, I know). Not to psychoanalyse my past self, but I think these names epitomise my confidence in my style. I was too embarrassed to share this blog on social media or even with my friends, due to issues I had with self-promotion and vanity plus my attempts to keep up the typical teenage 'I don't care about anything' persona. Despite this, I was always proud of what I was wearing and excited to share it with people online who wouldn't judge me for having a blog (as I assumed my peers would during my high school years). I actually think it would be interesting/hilarious to share some of my past outfits in a sort of style evolution post on my blog so let me know if this is something you'd like to see!

One of my absolute pet hates is when people (of both genders) assume that girls dress for boys. This is probably an assumption made more often when I was younger but it used to drive me absolutely insane! I mean I guess there's nothing wrong with dressing for boys (although if we dug in to the meaning behind this I guess it could be a little problematic) but it's genuinely something I've never done. Nights out used to be so much fun because finding something to wear that I loved was so exciting and the only thing that I considered when deciding what to wear was what I thought and how I felt in a certain outfit- this also meant that many of my outfits were highly, highly impractical but no one is going to get a kick out of living by practicality.

This 'dressing for boys' phenomenon is part of the reason why I absolutely love the blog turned extremely successful business, Man Repeller. I'm sure many of you know about Man Repeller already but in case you don't it was founded by Leandra Medine in 2010 who realised that much of what she wore and saw within the fashion industry was 'man repelling' (to put it simply). The popularity of this blog and resonance it has with so many women represents, to me, the extent to which women do not dress for men, because much of what we wear they don't like anyway. I feel like this is certainly the case for me and, honestly, this sometimes makes me like what I'm wearing more because it makes me feel like I have some sort of special sixth sense about just how cool a piece is. This is obviously extremely pretentious and I definitely do not have any sort of stylistic powers but I like to think that some of the more interesting pieces I own happen to be the ones that less people like.

I've been wanting to write a post about dressing for yourself for a while and when Jenny photographed this outfit for me, I knew these photos would be perfect for it. First of all, I am so happy with how they came out! Jenny is an incredible photographer and I've done a few other shoots with her before but these photos have to be my favourite yet. I think the outfit and the setting go so well together and I just love the colours in the photos. Definitely check out Jenny's Instagram because she is brilliant!

Anyway, on to the outfit! I feel like it's a little bit 'man-repelling' due to the mixture of very feminine and very masculine pieces. This dress is fairly new from Zara and I love it! I was on the hunt for a polka dot midi skirt for a while and this actually works great as a skirt and a dress as it's a really thin material so looks great with a t-shirt layered over it, or layered under it as I've styled it here! The jacket is also new (my shopping habits are steadily increasing at the moment) from Topshop and I really feel like it might be the perfect faux leather jacket. I have a long-line one and a cropped one but this mid-crop style is ideal for somewhere in between and, although some might say that owning 3 faux leather jackets is excessive, I think it's filled a gap in my wardrobe. Of course, I'm wearing my Zara woven bucket bag because it's my absolute favourite and I think it looks great with the colours of the pinewoods. The dress and the bag are obviously the feminine aspects of the outfit and clashed with my docs- which I enjoyed styling for spring/summer here as they're more of a winter piece normally- and the leather jacket, I think is such a cool outfit, if a little bit Marmite. I've linked everything I'm wearing at the bottom of this post!

I'd love to know if you feel the same way about dressing for yourself and your views on 'man-repelling' styling. Do you have a favourite man-repelling outfit or piece? Let me know in the comments!

Dress- Zara (for some reason, I can't find this dress on the Zara website but I only bought it a few weeks ago so it should 100% still be in store!)

Jacket- Topshop

Shoes- Dr Marten

Sunglasses- Mango

Bag- Zara

Alice Porter 5/11/18 Alice Porter 5/11/18

Finding Fresh Inspiration

With a new season, usually comes fresh inspiration and this year I've been feeling it more than ever thanks to the UK's prolonged periods of cold weather and premature heatwaves (talking about the weather in the first sentence might be a new record for me). The snow we experienced in mid-March really made me feel down and I was so sick of wearing winter clothes by that point that I was wearing pretty much the same thing every single day. So when temperatures hit above 20 degrees celsius in April I was SO ready to bring out my summer wardrobe. Summer is my favourite time of year generally but especially style-wise. I definitely do still feel this bout of inspiration when the weather starts to cool down during the month of October (but lets not talk about that right now as I'm ready to bask in the warm weather) but that's usually over within a few weeks when I realise it's actually too cold to wear anything that looks remotely nice. Summer styling is something I never get fed up of- I've been considering moving to a warmer climate when I'm older more and more recently- and with this style inspiration comes inspiration in all other parts of my life.

Summer is my favourite time for clothes because there's always something new and everything you're buying is a little bit more affordable so it's easier to play around with trends a bit more than it is in the winter. It means you can wear skirts and dresses, instead of trousers or tights (which tend to ruin most outfits for me) and generally just gives you so many more options when getting dressed in the morning.

This outfit was one I wore during last weekend's lovely warm weather (although it wasn't long until I changed into a skirt instead of jeans- us Brits really cannot hack a bit of sun unless we're wearing minimal amounts of clothing). I do really love this outfit though. It was inspired by the wonderful Liv Purvis who has been talking about how much she loves wearing white at the moment, and sharing some beautiful photos to exemplify this. I actually bought the top I'm wearing after seeing Liv wearing it on her Insta Stories a couple of months ago and it's been one of my most worn pieces since. The Los Angeles print is super cool and always makes my outfit feel more summery, as it is pretty much summer all year round in LA (not jealous/bitter at all). I've shared these jeans before on the blog but I bloody love them at the moment.They fit perfectly and switching a blue jean for a white pair is a great way to update your wardrobe for the new season.

Now, let's talk about these shoes. THESE SHOES. £4 in Primark- yes really! I am always blown away by how cheap Primark really is and although I can't always find amazing pieces in the clothing department, they pretty much always have a great collection of shoes. I picked up a different pair, that I'm sure will be on the blog soon, for £6 and I just couldn't believe that I had bought two pairs of shoes that I loved for a tenner! These gingham pumps are much more comfortable than I thought they would be. I have seriously wide feet so I'm always worried about wearing flat shoes like this but I actually think they're really flattering on my wide feet as they kind of have a slimming effect. These sunglasses are also a new purchase from Mango and I think they're so great. It's really nice to have a neutral pair of sunglasses that aren't black but that go with everything. Plus, the subtle cat-eye shape is probably my favourite in a pair of sunglasses as I find them quite flattering. And ,of course, I'm wearing my trusty Zara straw bag. Swapping a leather-style bag out for a straw bag really is a great way to update your style for summer though.

Summer doesn't just bring style inspiration for me though. It's the time where I feel my most creative and motivated. I think this is mostly due to the fact that I've been in education and sitting exams for the past 4 years. So the first few months of summer are usually, for me, spent working extremely hard and forcing myself to be motivated and the remaining months are time for me to let myself go and relax, which always evokes lots of creative energy. This year, I'm in my first year of university, which means the work I do does not count to my overall grade, so there isn't as much pressure as there has been over the past few years. Because of this, my motivational levels for revision have dropped a little bit but my creativity is in overdrive! I always feel like I have to suppress some of the things I enjoy during exams in order to focus which, in turn, makes me want to do them more. This year I'm letting myself do them more than usual but I still feel a little restricted because of UNI, which is frustrating but also just makes me so excited for summer.

I remember reading Just Kids by Patti Smith during my A-Levels last summer (this is a must-read BTW) and because this book shows off the extent to which Patti is such an incredibly creative person, it really lit a spark of creativity for me, which I wasn't able to release until after my exams. This book and this feeling are reminiscent of summer to me now. I'm thinking of re-reading it, or another book of hers, in the next few months to hopefully inspire me even more.

I'd love to hear what inspires you creatively, whether it's a particular season, a book or anything else! I have a good feeling about the next few months of summer and I'm hoping all this inspiration will manifest itself in my blog. So stay tuned!

Top- ASOS (sold out, ASOS stock some other great Daisy Street t-shirts though)

Jeans- Vintage (similar here)

Shoes- Primark (should still be available in store)

Sunglasses- Mango

Bag- Zara

Alice Porter 5/9/18 Alice Porter 5/9/18

Making Your UNI Room Feel Like Home

Moving into UNI halls is most people's first experience of living away from home, and what a weird experience it is. It's the only time in your life when you're thrown into living with people who you've never ever met before and then expected to become best friends with them straight away. Not only this, but your home is literally a corridor. It's a pretty weird experience when you think about it. It's a really fun and exciting one too but something I really struggled with (and sometimes still do) is not feeling at home. The amount of conversations I had with people during the first few weeks/months of UNI about the fact that we all felt like we were on a seriously long primary-school residential trip was crazy. Choosing to live in UNI halls means you have little to no choice about what your living space is going to look like, which can make it feel a little weird (especially when you go into your flatmates bedrooms and realise they're completely identical). This is why it's really important to make it your own. 'Home' is different for everyone but these are some of the things I've done to make my UNI room feel a little more 'me' and I'm hoping they'll be helpful for others too (they're going to be more catered towards living in halls but will obviously work for accommodation in 2nd year and beyond too).

1.Flowers

I only realised the power of fresh flowers fairly recently after I was bought some in February. They brightened up my room so much and the concept of having something that is alive and growing in your room is such a positive one, even if you're only thinking about it sub-consciously. They don't have to be expensive either. These cost £4 from Tesco and will probably last about 2 weeks and you can get them for even cheaper than that. Plus, I didn't even need to buy a vase as this jug that my flatmates stole from Wetherspoons works perfectly.

2. Fairy Lights

This one is a bit of a cliché for students but for good reason! Fairy lights make your room feel so much cosier and look so much prettier. I particularly love these heart attachments I picked up from IKEA to go on top of them. Since buying these, I've definitely started enjoying the appearance of my room a little bit more. I'd also really recommend buying a lamp! It seems simple but it's easy to forget and having a lamp is so much more cozy and less harsh than having your ceiling light on at all times.

3. Decorating My Walls

This is probably the easiest way to make your room feel like your own. As you can see, the designers of my accommodation decided to go for these prison-style brick walls so I was desperate to get them covered. Whether it's with posters, pages cut out from magazines or some of your own photos, in my experience, it's best to cover as much wall space as possible. I picked this poster up on the first week of UNI at the student poster sale (really feeling like a walking, talking cliché in this post) and it was probably the first thing I did to make the room feel like my own. Also, a quick tip, most UNI rooms don't let you use blue tac so get your hands on some adhesive strips! They work in just the same way and won't leave any marks on your walls.

4. Adding A Personal Touch

Pack as many personal photos as you can when you go to UNI. They're such a comfort to have around your room and will always remind you of the people you love if your ever feeling down. I put mine predominantly by my bed as I most often feel down when falling asleep but the more around your room the better!

5. Bed Sheets

This is a super simple one as obviously everyone has to buy bed sheets, so make sure you buy ones you like if you can! They'll be on your bed from the minute you arrive at UNI and will stay there for the rest of the year, so it's important to have ones you like and, in my opinion, ones that really brighten up your room. I was lucky enough to receive this blanket and pillow hand-made as a gift from my wonderful Aunty Chris specifically for moving to UNI and it's the best gift I could have ever asked for as it always reminds me of family and, clearly, brightens up in my room in every way possible. (Also, there is no shame in having a cuddly toy or two as exhibited by my bunny that I got last Christmas who has also significantly helped in making my room feel more homely).

I hope you've enjoyed having a little look into my UNI room. Living in halls has been a weird experience for me but having a room I actually like has made it so much better and really improved the experience. So take some time to think about what you want in your room and how you want it to look next year as it really will make a difference! I'd also love to here what you do to make your room your own! Here are some more photos of my room if you're feeling a little bit nosey:

Alice Porter 5/4/18 Alice Porter 5/4/18

Is There Meaning Behind 'Millennial Pink'?

So-called 'Millennial Pink' has pervaded social media for the last few years. It seems strange that after years of neutral 'scandi colours' being the go-to colour palette that pink should take over. It's hard to escape this shade (or shades) of pink in the world of social media and, don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining. I love how 'Millennial Pink' looks, as you might be able to tell from the outfit I'm wearing in this post. It's a relatively neutral colour but still definitely moves away from a monochrome colour palette and, despite perhaps pretending I didn't like it in my early teens because it wasn't 'cool', I really do like the colour pink. But what is it about it that everyone has suddenly gone crazy for?

Pink has long been a colour associated with girlhood and femininity. Because of this, I feel like many people detach themselves from it when they're growing up. I guess this can be an act of feminist rebellion or an attempt to impress boys at school and show them that 'you're not like other girls' (YAWN!)- for me it was probably, sub-consciously, a little bit of both. I never totally turned my back on the colour pink but I do think I associated it with not being very 'cool' during my high school years (perhaps this has something to do with the fact that I remember owning a book called 'Pink Knickers Aren't Cool'- not sure if I ever got round to reading it but perhaps I made an assumption from the title). Whether this is something that everyone experiences, I'm not sure, but I definitely think the colour pink went through a period of being out of fashion.

So why is it suddenly the colour of the moment? Perhaps it's a re-claiming of the typically feminine colour, an attempt to re-define it as genderless. I like this theory but I don't think that's really why my Instagram feed is permeated by the colour. The Cut, in their analysis of millennial pink made the point that 'gone is the girly-girl baggage; now it’s androgynous.' And this is true. Millennial pink has transformed this feminine colour into something that features in bars and restaurants whose target audience is made up equally of both genders. Menswear has definitely taken note on the trend too and incorporated it with success. But what about a hot pink or a magenta? Are they still 'uncool' and 'girly'? Is this neutral shade of pink as far as society is willing to go in dissolving gender stereotypes? Maybe I'm looking into it too much (this is a very regular occurrence for me as an English student) but I think there's interesting discussion to be had here.

Going back to the early 2010's obsession with neutral colour schemes, I am really curious as to how we came to pick a shade of pink as the colour of the moment. The Guardian puts it down to various things including Wes Anderson's colour scheme throughout 'The Grand Budapest Hotel' and the creation of the rose gold iPhone (although I personally would not describe rose gold as anything close to millennial pink but maybe that's a little pedantic). They describe it as representing 'a kind of ironic prettiness, or post-prettiness. It’s a way to be pretty while retaining your intellectual detachment. It’s a wish that prettiness could de-problematised.' I found this so interesting. Again, I think this links back to the gender stereotypes attached to the colour. Pink is perceived as girly, vain and maybe even vapid. But 'Millennial Pink' is neutral, sophisticated and 'artsy' (the fact that it featured so heavily in a Wes Anderson film, I think, immediately attaches this cultural element to it). Do we really all still care about the stereotypes attached to colours? Did we ever? The phenomenon of 'trending colours' in itself suggests so in my opinion.

Like I said, I really could be looking into this too much but it's something that fascinates me. I'd also like to make a disclaimer that I am in no way attacking Millennial Pink or people who use/like it as I am one of those people and it genuinely is a very appealing colour. This is an outfit that I love despite it's relevance to the post and it's truly a colour I wear often.

Anyway, before moving on to talk about this outfit, I'd like to include some of the comments on The Guardian's article about millennial pink here as they amused me greatly and they deserve to be shared. One commenter shares 'I like it because it's dull and inoffensive', which makes my analysis seem a little bit pointless. Can't really argue with them though- fair enough!

A comment thread that is a bit more relevant to this post (phew!) and made me laugh reads as such:

"Commenter One:

I call it rosegold myself. Pink is too feminine.

Commenter Two:

Rosegold is far more butch

Commenter Three:

Rosegoddamngold.

Commenter Four:

Colours have genders? Who knew?"

I hope you enjoyed those comments as much as I did! Anyway, to talk about these photos/this outfit a little bit- firstly, I am so happy with how they came out and am very impressed with my mum's photography! After staring at endless amounts of cherry blossom trees out the window on my bus journey to and from UNI, I was determined to get some photos with them, and luckily enough we have one right outside my house. Even more lucky is that I bought this jumper only a couple of weeks ago and it co-ordinates perfectly with said cherry blossom. I love this jumper because it's really reminiscent of the Ganni jumper that I swooned over for months during winter but is obviously way out of my price range. After seeing this Urban Outfitters version on Georgia Meramo, I patiently waited for it to go in the sale and managed to pick it up for over 50% off at £21- not too bad! Paired with my Topshop cords, this really does make for the perfect millennial pink outfit in my opinion (even if I'm 'technically' too young to be a millennial). Despite my previous discussion of removing gender stereotypes, I really do like how my more 'boyish' converse counteract the femininity of my straw bag and also maintain a neutral colour palette against the pink.

I'd love to hear your views on the symbolic meaning of the colour that has perhaps defined the 'Instagram generation' (I don't know if that's a real phrase or if I've just made it up). Do you think it means anything or do you just think people simply like the colour? Feel free to tell me that I'm looking into it too much- I won't be offended at all because it's something I have to remind myself of every single day as a chronic over-thinker. But I also like to think that everything in life has some sort of meaning, so there you have it!

Jumper- Urban Outfitters

Trousers- Topshop (sold out, similar here)

Sunglasses- Warehouse (old, similar here)

Shoes- Converse

Bag- Zara

Alice Porter 5/2/18 Alice Porter 5/2/18

The Power of Sunshine

So today I'm going to be talking about the weather- how very British of me! Seriously though, I can't even believe the heatwave that we experienced a couple of weeks ago actually happened now I'm back in my jumpers and coats. But it did! And I have photo evidence to prove it! British people really are obsessed with the weather but there's good reason for it in my opinion. The weather has such a significant effect on my mood, motivation and social life and I always feel so much happier during the summer months than in the winter. Don't get me wrong, I love Christmas but I really feel like summer brings out the best version of me and I've recently decided that moving to a hot country would be worth what I'm sure would be a weird and disorientating feeling of experiencing Christmas without freezing cold weather and lots of layers.

During the UK's week of sun, I threw my university deadlines to one side and really made the most of it. Something I did with relative ease and would not have been able to do without serious anxiety and guilt usually. But as warm weather is so rare in our country, I really felt a sense of carelessness, which was so unusual and liberating for me. I feel like the sun loosens everyone up a little bit- well I'm certain it must do really if it makes someone as uptight as me loose track of my work. Obviously this might not be a good thing for everyone (aka those who are already a little nonchalant about their workload) but getting a little bit behind on work to enjoy times with friends and family surely doesn't hurt anyone.

That brings me nicely on to my next point about the power of sunny weather- it really gets an introvert like me out of the house a fair bit! I spent time in beer gardens, getting some work done with my friends outside rather than tucked up in my room as well as going on a night out, which was so nice. Leaving the comfort of my own space is always a tiny bit of a chore for me when the skies are grey and depressing but any time I had to spend indoors during the heatwave was spent rushing to get back outside. As mentioned in my last post about being comfortable with yourself, there's nothing wrong with being an introvert and enjoying staying in but sometimes it can be too easy to get a little bit carried away with how much time you're spending with yourself, which before you know it leads to feelings of loneliness and isolation. So I think a little push from the weather that makes you feel eager to spend time with other people is always a positive thing!

I spent the final day of sun we experienced, which just so happened to be a Saturday, in my favourite ever city and hometown, Liverpool. After sitting in a pub to watch the football (only a tiny bit against my will) Sam and I went to The Bagelry for lunch, which I would 100% recommend- I had the most amazing vegan pancakes and it's super affordable. We spent the rest of the day wandering around some shops and then went on a night out to Heebie Jeebies with his housemates which was so much fun. It was such a nice day/night and I was in a great mood the whole time (which, I have to admit, is rare), which I'm putting down to the weather.

The skirt I'm wearing I bought only the week before from Topshop, thinking I wouldn't be able to wear it for months or even ever in the UK, and so I was super excited to have a chance to wear it only the week after. This vest is also from Topshop and it's one I picked up last year. I also have it in white and they were both staples in my wardrobe throughout the entire summer of 2017. I think they're really flattering and I was obviously very pleased by how well these two shades of blue co-ordinate. Whilst my dark-wash denim jacket adds another shade of blue to the outfit, I especially love how the contrast stitching highlights the whites of my outfit. It's kind of ironic that I'm wearing an outfit that consists of various shades of blue whilst talking about sunny weather and happiness but I promise there really is no symbolism behind these colours.

I'm also wearing what is my current favourite bag from Zara. You're probably going to become sick of the sight of it because it's going to be featured in lots of upcoming posts. But I absolutely love it and I would 100% keep an eye out on Zara's website for a re-stock of it if I were you. These slides are so simple (and were such a bargain) but they really do elevate every outfit I wear. I particularly love styling them with some boyfriend/mom style jeans for an effortless look that is also clearly put together. And finally, these sunglasses that I've definitely neglected a bit too much over the past few years. They're a little bit OTT but I actually really like that and I think they're also quite flattering for my face shape.

I hope you've enjoyed this post and I'd love to hear about how the weather affects your mood. Are you a summer person like me or do you prefer the winter? I'd especially love to hear your reasoning behind the latter as despite the joys of Christmas, my birthday and all the other festivities I just can't get behind the cold weather and so would love to hear your thoughts! Let's hope for more warm weather in the UK! (Although I haven't got my hopes up too high- classic British cynicism hey!)