Thursday 13 February 2014

Anya Jung Illustration

My lovely friend Anya, who is a supremely talented illustrator, is opening an Etsy shop selling prints and cards of some of her work! I'm so excited for her =]

I'm very proud to own one of her 'Once in a Blue Moon' prints. I've loved Anya's work for as long as i've known her (which is...oh my...10 years!), especially the black and white linework like this. Also it's a bear riding a penny farthing on a tightrope whilst wearing a top hat in the moonlight! How could such a whimsical image fail to make you smile?

If you'd like to see more, please check out her Etsy shop Anya Jung Illustration!

I'm currently on the hunt for a square frame to put this print in, so if anyone knows somewhere I can get them at a reasonable price, let me know!

Sunday 9 February 2014

What's In Your Suitcase? Conference Style

I recently attended a fabulous conference in Edinburgh on the subject of 'Death in Scotland; Medieval to the Modern' where I met loads of great people and learned so much.

I was travelling by train and only taking one small suitcase, to stay for a week, including 3 days of conference, one day exploring the city and 2 days fieldwork. The fieldwork clothes consisted of jeans, jumpers and thermals so I won't bore you with them, but here's what else I crammed into my case!
When I got to my hotel unpacked the case and laid each outfit out to make sure I hadn't forgotten anything.

Day 1

I spent the first day exploring Edinburgh. I visited Carlton Old Burial Ground, Greyfriars Kirkyard and the central library in Edinburgh.


Black Turtleneck: Miss Selfridge. Christmas Present from Mum
Black Waistcoat: Via a charity shop, I think it was around £3.
Red Velvet Skirt: Metamorphose Temps de Fille via egl-comm-sales. The bow is one of the detachable ones from the skirt.
I wore this with black tights, black boot covers and black DMs (good for muddy graveyards)

Day 2

The first day of the conference. I toned down a frilly lolita blouse by wearing it with a professional looking skirt. More velvet because it's was cold up there!


Black Blouse: RQ-BL from Sai Sai
Black Pinstripe Blazer: New Look
Black Velvet Skirt: Next
Also worn with black tights and black oxford shoes from Primark

Day 3
I decided that I could wear a more OTT skirt if I wore it with a simpler blouse, as long as I picked the  right one. The conference was held in the School of Divinity building, so I thought that the Churches on this one would go down well! I did get several compliments =]



(this photo refused to rotate the right way round, I have no idea why)

Black and White Stripe Blouse: Warehouse
Black Velvet Skirt with Church Embroidery: Handmade via egl-comm-sales
Jabot: From the RQ-BL blouse
Also with the same waistcoat as Day 1, more black tights and the same shoes.

Day 4
This outfit had to be both the most practical and the warmest because the conference ended with a  tour of Warrington Cemetery.

Black Peter Pan Collar Jumper: Muji, it was a present
Purple Velvet Skirt: I got this in a charity shop, several years ago in Weymouth
Purple Cardigan: H&M
Worn with 2 pairs of warm black tights, boot covers and my DMs.

I hung each outfit on one hanger (there were only 6) with another one for my petticoats and the final one for my coat etc.

(I don't know why these photos aren't rotating properly)

I needed a place to hang my hat, found a bulldog clip in my pencil case that was the perfect solution

(Argh! These pictures...)

I hope you enjoyed this look into my trip to Edinburgh! I'll post some photos of the beautiful graveyards soon.