We all scream for....a badly furnished apartment in ghetto central

Afternoon,

In good news I am even more stressed than yesterday about the apartment hunt in London. It seems if you call them they will grill you about every penny you have and then still wont offer you a viewing anytime this Millenia. No, it's fine, I would love to move in at the beginning of April...2013. I am going to have to make some serious life choices this weekend - I am going to need to buy more Poptarts.

I must apologise to those of you that read my blog yesterday and saw a rather large (but fabulous Haute Hippie) skirt covering half my title. I have no idea how it got there, but after my mother had text me saying "it's time to lift your skirt love" I thought I must remove it or be subjected to other cringey jokes. So even though I removed my skirt yesterday, I was still unable to find an apartment in even the most crappy areas of London - obviously 'Diary of a London Call Girl' is not so true to life after all.

The highlight of my day was watching "Steps - The Reunion" with my bestie Becky (we have the same name, the same road, the same teeth....). It was all well and good when you wanted to be Claire - who turned out to be the Yoko to H's John Lennon - and how much we all loved H - whose real name is Ian and is as straight as a Pete Doherty's walk in front of a policeman after a night out; but what happens now they are trying to reunite 10 years on? The programme was a 4 parter that originally aired in August 2011 about why the band split. It turns out they hated each other. 10 years on my bfffff and I couldn't believe how hurt we were that Lee and H weren't actually the 'bros' to Lisa, Faye and Claire's 'ho's'. Devestated. I think the real victim of the last 10 years is....PVC. No band since has managed to make PVC so integral to their everyday wardrobe. We all remember the little squeaky blue numbers of 'Deeper Shade of Blue' and those long red coats for .... well I have no idea, but we all remember. The sale of talcum powder must have rapidly declined now that we have no reason to wear a yellow PVC jump suit...and that was just for the boys. Oh well, if we can't wear that, we will listen to 'It's The Way You Make Me Feel' and feast over these beauties...

I



Mulberry S/S 12 Campaign
http://www.mulberry.com/#/thisseason/thecampaign/

Fashion Trend: Ice cream colours! Delish to say the least. Louis Vuitton and Mulnberry have both gone as far as to add ice cream props into their new collections. Take a look at any of the scrummy LV adverts in Vogue/Harper's and see that in the fashion world food is rarely for eating. A good many designers showcased pastels in a bid to transform models into 60s beauties - but there is not a twinset and pearls in sight. Think high heels in mint, housewife dresses in Pepto pink and shapely suits in sherbert lemon. This trend is so perfect for those of us trying to save for an apartment...because you literally just have to colour block with pastels!! So grab your pair of lemon denims, throw on a peach shirt and grab a Nobbly Bobbly - it's going to be a HOT summer!!

Ingrid Dot Print Dress £520
http://www.viviennewestwood.co.uk/shop/w
omenswear/dresses/ingrid-dots-print-dress-13219/

Fashion Item: Ingrid Dots Print Dress - Vivienne Westwood. If you know me you know I LOVE polka dots. I would paint them on my face if I could. I just think they are feminine and dainty...like me!! Ok, we are too far into our friendship for me to start telling porkies, but I do LOVE this dress. It is classic and the shape is so flattering. The muted colours could definitely fit into the ice cream trend as well. This dress is so worth giving up real dessert for...

Scarlett $180
http://ivankatrumpfootwear.com/index
.php/collections/weekend/scarlett.html

Store or Label: Ivanka Trump Footwear http://ivankatrumpfootwear.com/index.php/profile/news. I suppose as with every celebrity turned designer it depends what you think of the person. I have always had a strange fascination with her. She has a HUGE range of shoes on her website and they are very reasonably priced - no more than a pair of Kurt Geigers for sure. She has something for every occasion from wedding to weekend. It is worth a look at least - you deserve a bit of me time after all that dessert you've given up.

Celebrity or Designer: Isabel Marant - French chic really can't come in any other box. She has something to suit everyone because so many trends are covered. Pleats, fashionable sportswear, boy chic, prints, denim; you want it, she has it. If you are feeling a certain je ne sais quoi, she will surely sais quoi it is you want. She isn't afraid to use colour, she isn't afraid to mix prints and there was a host of unusual fabric in her S/S collection. Tres bien.

All this typing has made me hungry. Anyone for pancakes? Extra ice cream.
Becky xx

WWHD?

Have you seen the part in the Sex and the City movie where Big tells Carrie that he has bought that ridiculous pent house for them and she screams and runs at him due to undulated joy? Well my friends, I am here to tell you apartment hunting is not like that. I don't think I have ever been so stressed in my entire life....and i've done this whole scenario before but in a different country. I have been reduced to eating dark chocolate (possibly cooking chocolate??) because it reflects the bitter sweet situation I am in....nah it's because it is the only kind we have in the house. Did you know that when you try to find an apartment, you are not only looking for what you like, nor even what your flat-sharer will like, oh no, the entire family is involved. For those of you who don't know me, I am a white female, with a white family, yet during this house hunting situation I am pretty sure my relatives have turned into an Indian family. No no my mother has not started cooking bhajis while my father looks on charming a snake (please note this is a horrible generalisation but continue on with me), it is more like in the scene in 'Bend it Like Beckham' where Jess' entire family are involved in the pre wedding/wedding/post wedding....everything else.....of Jess' sister. I am in a metaphorical room with one cousin shouting 'Go to Brick Lane' and the other shouting 'Don't go to Golders Green - we aren't Jewish and you won't eat Kosher, remember the time you gave up shrimp for a month and started talking to yourself??!!' Then you have the word NEGOTIATE hanging in the air like a bad blintz (see I can be Jewish); which your family now uses more than your name. I will have to injure the next person to even utter it. "Can you negotiate your pay" - it's an internship, i'm not getting paid. "Can you negotiate rent?" - This isn't the dodgy part of Brooklyn where you can pay with ahem, favours. "Can you negotiate a better price on those Louboutin's? I live in Brooklyn you know...." I joke, I joke...All I am saying loved ones is that you must step back and smell the samosa. If I want to live in a seedy bedsit in Croydon I will, no one is asking you to live there....but if you could come round Tuesdays at 9am and flick the vacuum round, well it's much appreciated.

 And now, all the things I cannot afford but will doodle over my Liberty journal anyway...

H

http://www.prada.com/en#!/advertising-
campaign-ss12/woman-print-campaign

Fashion Trend: Hello Heels!! No, I am not copping out on you. What I mean is make your heels the statement piece of your outfit. Designers have gone crazy for the most wonderful shoes this season. I am seriously considering wearing pillowcases as dresses so I can afford a pair of the Prada flame ones. Glitter, feathers, odd shapes, skyscrapers - make sure it counts!! I am not one to shy away from wearing heels, so I LOVE that the higher the better at the moment. If that scares you then get something lower but make sure they scream look at me. If you aren't the best dressed at the party, what's the point in going?

Louis Vuitton £505

http://www.louisvuitton.co.uk/front/#/eng_GB

/Collections/Women/Shoes

Fashion Item: High Tops! Those of you that know me will likely judge me on this, because I have never worn this type of shoe...and it seems a bit odd seeing I just told you to go skyscraper in the bit above.... but I have found THE pair of hightops. They are gold and they are Louis Vuitton. Tell me you don't want them. You are a liar. Imagine them with any of the amazing coloured jeans out at the moment. Sheer shirt, Bayswater bag....oh, stop it babes.

Sequin Skirt £675 Haute Hippie - Harrods

http://www.harrods.com/brand/haute-

hippie/view-all?dept=az

Store or Label: Haute Hippie. This is an American brand which in terms of fashion is incredibly new - 2008 start date. They pretty much do what they say on the tin, mixing high end feel with Bohemian/hippie qualities. Their stuff is gorgeous and everyone from Harrods to Net-A-Porter is trying to get their hands on it. It has a very All Saints feel...but unfortunately at ten times the price. Their pieces are modern takes on classic beauties. They know what makes a woman feel sexy whether it be at coffee with a friend or having cocktails with a beau. I can see them being around for a long time, so start saving ladies - you won't regret it. Oh and they LOVE sequins, so naturally they are our best friends.

Celebrity or Designer: Helena Bonham Carter - she is always my H for anything!! She stands out from the rest and doesn't care what the fashion is. I will never get over her wearing two different coloured Vivienne Westwood shoes to an award ceremony. She is just a doll. When getting dressed think WWHD? What Would Helena Do? She would bin it - and I mean she would wear a bin bag, belt it and call it done. Colour me awe-inspired, she is my queen. Work it girl, crazy is the new black.

Go, pitch up a tent, it sure as heck must be easier.

Becky xx

If you go down to the woods today be sure to watch out for Nicki Minaj

Good Afternoon.

Lets be honest, last night was a whirlwind of activity for the fashion scene. In England, the Baftas, in America the Grammy Awards. Seriously, what's a girl to do? The Baftas was just swimming with eco-friendly outfits. It's enough to warm a girl's incense stick. Correct me if i'm wrong but the cutest couple on the red carpet last night were Mr and Mrs Colin Firth; both in eco friendly suits. Stop being so cute. Livia Firth was wearing a tuxedo made from ethical and sustainable wool and silk, which was designed for her by Paul Smith. She looks astonishing in it. Perhaps, in a strange way, one of the most feminine pieces at the awards. Michelle Williams also gave a nod to the eco, by wearing an eco-friendly (designed by H&M) dress. Im not going to lie, it wasnt much to look at but that girl could wear a bin liner and turn heads...and this was certainly no bin liner. She also carried an Arthur Miller book handbag round which I have become obsessed with. Who wants to help me hollow out "Lady Chatterley's Lover" so I can keep my Blackberry in it?

The Grammy's - well what can I say? Rihanna thank you for not wearing a dead baby bird and calling it a skirt. Her dress was a little low cut for me (and a little high cut if you look at the legs!) but was a definite classier look for her. Im excited for her to realise that classy is the way forward and then maybe change her hair... I think her new capsule collection for Giorgio Armani is something to keep an eye on. I was pretty disturbed by a lot of the clothing - Nicki Minaj im looking directly at you. Little Red Riding Hood should be a crap Halloween costume or a creepy bedroom fantasy - let's leave it that way. Kelly Rowland looked stunning in Alberta Ferretti and Gwyneth Paltrow stole the night in a classic LBD with a twist, thanks to Stella McCartney. I was actually quite taken with what Paris Hilton was wearing - a floor length, with slight train, white and silver cap sleeve gown belted at the waist with a skinny silver belt. All in all a lot to take in across the globe last night and thankfully that included a good many tributes to Whitney. Jennifer Hudson brought the house down with a tear jerking performance of I Will Always Love You which was perfectly finished with the words 'Whitney we will always love you'.

But, as they say, the show must go on...

D

Diamond Tassel Harry Winston

Fashion Trend: Diamonds. Yes, that's right, the day before Valentine's I am telling you diamonds are in baby. Well actually fancy and glamour are in. Kate Middleton isn't the only pretty princess on the block and they are causing a stir. We are dropping the destructed look, the short skirts, the S&M leather and we are dripping in diamonds, tweed and ballerina flats. Louis Vuitton, Nina Ricci and Valentino sent their models down the runway drooping under the weight of their own tiaras and shallow breathing through their chokers. Remember girls, if it isn't Harry's it aint worth nothing. Oh go on then, ill just have the one. (http://www.harrywinston.com/landingincredible/incredibles-1/behold-the-incredibles/necklaces-1/diamond-tassel)

Double Arrow Studs
Topshop

Fashion Item: Double Arrow Studs - £5 - Topshop. I HAVE TO OWN THESE!! They are the most perfect thing to have for tomorrow - a little cupids arrow! See not everything fabulous is out of our budget! Buy them and point them towards your loved one...or of course stab them in your voodoo doll, whatever you feel like doing tomorrow. (http://www.topshop.com/)

Store or Label: Desigual. They are quickly becoming a global presence teaming up with the unlikeliest partners. Their Cirque du Soleil collection for instance is rather cute and unusual to say the least - lots of circus colours and doll faces. The label is very colourful, very fun and pretty young - unfortunately the prices do not reflect this with most sweaters being at least £100, dresses just under etc. They don't necessarily follow fashion too closely though so any piece you buy you will be able to wear again and again. They just pitched up in the Mall of America as well, so those of you from MN will understand they are a talent to watch out for.

Celebrity or Designer: Deadmau5. I couldn't not point this out. He brought a whole new meaning to keep your enemies close - he literally wore the competition's phone number on his t-shirt to the Grammy's last night. I. Love. Him. His shirt read "(626) 319-1039 u mad bro?". Hilarious. Before you get excited, Skrillex whose number it is, has "retired" this phone now. I'm thinking it would make dating a lot easier though right. You're single you write your number on your clothes, you're taken you write your boyfriend's? Maybe not....

Go, enjoy your Monday and either pick up some lingerie...or P.S. I Love You... ready for tomorrow.
Becky xx