I Can Sing A Rainbow…

In the not-too-distant past, I was late to the game in being alerted to the existence of one fantastic specimen of clothing. Allow me to introduce to you the one and only UNIF Crayola Sweater…

(I think she may be a little shy…wicked dye job, though. And big up to the leather backpack. Job well done.)

The second I laid eyes on it, I simply had to have it. The burning desire consumed me day and night. I simply could not rest until it tickled my tingling skin. You know what they say…a little colour never killed nobody. It has come close multiple times…but never really succeeded.

Unfortunately, with a price tag of $88 (excluding shipping charges), this glorious sweater was simply out of my reach. My dreams were shattered. That is…until now.

Yes, my pretties…I TOO NOW POSSESS THE CRAYOLA SWEATER. I TOO NOW LOOK LIKE A MORBIDLY TOO-COOL-FOR-SMILES UNIF MODEL.

Mirror cameo from mi madre…

Well. Close enough.

Naturally, I had an innate desire to Goth-up this little rainbow number for fear of leaving the house resembling one of the school children from Matilda (1996). A grey woollen turtleneck, some leather-look skinnies and a pair of Oxblood Dr. Martens later and HEY PRESTO…I still looked like one of the school children from Matilda but I felt pretty hella rad. So I simply had to share my joy with the readers of my bloggy-wog. I would like to thank the Academy for allowing me the opportunity to buy this marvellous sweater, as well as the Urban Outfitters sale and my employee discount.

However, rather unfortunately for my purse, I now have the UNIF bug. I SIMPLY CANNOT GET ENOUGH OF THIS BRAND.

From the adorable Bound Creepers…

To the Poodle Moto coat…

And not to mention this Lydia Dress…

THEY EVEN DO TEENY-WEENY PUNKY CLOTHES FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE LIKE REAL HUMANS ONLY SMALLER.

Needless to say, I can practically hear the sobs of my poor purse crying from the depths of my handbag as I type. Ah well. As this insanely awesome UNIF t-shirt says…

Au revoir, me hearties!

-Niamhy xx

My January Lookbook!

For the past two weeks every time I closed my eyes in an attempt to drift off into The Land of Nod, I could hear a small distant voice crying out to me, “Come back…come back to me…” I have concluded that this little voice was that of this little bloggy-wog. Either that or I really need to make an appointment with a specialist.

Anyway…HONEYYYYY, I’M HOOOOOOOME!

So as a homecoming gift (please do detect the sarcasm in this statement), I decided I would entitle my blog to a little glimpse of the author. Aren’t you all lucky (once again: sarcasm)? Having attempted to take some time out each day whilst in London to capture a little snapshot of my outfit for that day, I have created an extremely amateur lookbook of what I wore over my birthday week, both in The Big Smoke and in the comfort of my beautiful wee Belfast. I hope you enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: I have the oddest shaped legs known to man. Please, no hate.

OUTFIT ONE

Denim jacket: vintage

Charcoal turtleneck: Zara

Grey bobble sweatshirt: Topman

Leather-look skinny trousers: Topshop

Dr. Martens: Schuh

Early mornings, long delays in the airport and lengthy treks to find my apartment got me channeling my inner John Bender with a grungy, ‘rebellious teen’ look. Kinda smells like teen spirit to me.

OUTFIT TWO

Jumper dress: Urban Outfitters

Black turtleneck: H&M

Flecked tweed shorts (worn underneath: Topshop

Twelve solid hours of exploring the city COMPLETELY ON-FOOT had Niamhy feeling a bit worse-for-wear by about 10pm. Sleepy bunny. But I did get the ‘typical tourist’ photo I so desperately longed for. So it was all worth it. ONE OF THE BEST DAYS EVER.

The aforementioned tourist-y shot…

Coat: Urban Outfitters

Telephone box: property of London

OUTFIT THREE

I must admit, day three was my birthday and in my excitement of finally achieving my lifelong dream of witnessing The Phantom of the Opera on the Her Majesty’s Theatre stage, posy photos of my outfit were forgotten in an ecstatic, excited haze. But please enjoy this photo of me looking like a foetus-faced chubby cherub having a deranged fan-girl moment:

Dress: MINKPINK

OUTFIT FOUR

Black lace blouse: Urban Renewal

Bralet: Urban Outfitters

Satin palazzo pants: H&M

Boogie-boogie time for Niamhy back in beautiful, beautiful Belfast! And it wouldn’t be my birthday without an insane pair of shoes perfectly capable of causing a fatality…but don’t we love them?

Shoes: Privileged for Schuh

And just for you lovely readers, I have a before and after feature of me before I left the comfort of my home and a few hours later when I was considerably…ahem…happier. Here’s the before:

And…um…here’s the…eh…after. Let’s play a game of spot the difference, shall we? Pouts vs. smiles, anyone?

OUTFIT FIVE

Dress: Topshop (HOW ADORABLE IS THIS DRESS?)

Shoes: Schuh

It is tradition for my mother and I to attend at least one ballet per year (me having been a ballet dancer for seven years) and this year was no exception. This is what I wore to a performance of The Nutcracker by the Russian State Ballet of Siberia at the Grand Opera House, Belfast. In an attempt to get the perfect shot of my outfit, I managed to take three standard photos, none of which equated to my idea of perfection…but here, have them anyway:

So basically…yeah. That’s y’all up-to-date with what I wore for an entire week in the month of January. Who knows…maybe this monthly lookbook idea will become a regular feature of the blog. Either that or I will die of embarrassment at having posted so many wannabe-model photos of myself on the internet and will never write an article on this blog (or any other form of social media, for that matter) ever again. Only time will tell.

-Niamhy xx

Working Post-Christmas Sales In Retail

As a student, I work part-time in retail.

December is nearing its finale. Therefore, over the past few weeks I have been working Christmas in retail. And Christmas in retail means only one thing: CHRISTMAS SHOPPERS. And the dawn of December 26th means only one thing: BOXING DAY SALES.

Needless to say, I love my job. And part of loving my job involves the enjoyment, fulfilment and sense of satisfaction I gain from helping a customer find that perfect item which they covet so immensely.

HOWEVER…

I can honestly say that the past two shifts in my workplace have been two of the most physically, mentally and emotionally draining shifts I have ever experienced in my whole entire life. And I guess the reason I am informing you lovely people of my situation is that this thus acts as my reason for being pretty absent from the world of blogging of late. I’m not entirely sure anyone truly cares about my silence but I figured I would offer an explanation anyway.

I shall leave you all with this speedy little horror punk number which has been doing the rounds of the windmills of my mind for the past week. Goodness knows why. Don’t psychoanalyse me. This post should come with a parental advisory sticker.

Furthermore, I look forward to a quell in the madness of sale shopping and anticipate a return to normality in the very near future. And by normality, I mean this:

(This is actually the most accurate video I have ever seen in my whole entire life.)

Adios, amigos!

-Niamhy xx

Such Stuff As Dreams Are Made On…

I must not tell a lie. My reaction to the news that Ghost had collaborated with Urban Outfitters may have been uncalled for. It would not be an understatement to say that my facial expression was quite similar to that of a certain acclaimed Munch painting…

If, like me, you are prone to hibernating under a rock and hermit-ing your life away cocooned in a blanket with only gallons of Diet Coke and clichéd supernatural/crime/science fiction TV shows for company, allow me to strip everything down to the basics.

Urban Outfitters is the (rather controversial) clothing company who employs yours truly and is notorious for the onus of its focus being on retro, vintage and (dare I say it) ‘hipster’ styles. In case you didn’t know, this company really digs cats and pugs. And it is a pretty groovy company to be a part of… *cough* suck-up *cough*

Complimentary hipster meme…

Ghost is a London-based fashion house famous for modernising the classic biased cuts of evening dresses of yore, updating their designs each season but remaining faithful to their sole aim of maintaining the glamour of vintage occasion wear.

I would give away organs to own this dress…

So, I bet I can guess the question which currently resides in your minds…what happens when these two (significantly different) gametes fuse together to create a little fashion hybrid?

Well, here lies your answer:

Did I hear the word ‘chic’? If this is not the definition of the perfect LBD, I don’t know what is. Congratulations, Ghost and UO. You have managed to produce the perfect love-child. I hasten to add that the collection is actually affordable too, with the photographed satin slip dress being the most expensive piece in the collection standing at a reasonable £120. As us Belfastians say, you couldn’t be bad to it.

The Winnie midi satin slip dress in silver is currently on my wishlist. My somnolent musings wander to visions of me pairing this gorgeous item with my beloved purple velvet Dr. Martens and a black fur coat (faux, of course). It truly is such stuff as dreams are made on.

Niamh’s expectations of being a grunge princess:

Niamh’s reality: (Sorry Courtney, babes, this was a faux pas…)

So, I think a round of applause is in order for Urban Outfitters and Ghost for doing it right *claps* and I pray for many collaborations between the two companies in future. Over and out. I’m off to count the pennies in my piggy bank…

-Niamhy xx