February 2016 – LILY ROSE KING

Do your bank balance a favour

STRIPED TEE: H&M // RIPPED JEANS: Topshop

NECKLACE: Vintage from Greenman Festival // BELT: Primark

If you couldn’t already tell by now, I’m obsessed with stripes. Especially, but not limited to, black and white. I love the way stripes go so well with denim – a stripey top is so easily thrown together with any pair of jeans or a denim skirt or dungarees. It’s simple but powerful in making a statement and looking effortlessly chic. I’ve been looking for a top like this for ages and I bagged this one for £7.99 in H&M. It has a retro feel to it and the cropped style means it’ll be versatile for both days / evenings and winter / summer.

These jeans were another £9 bargain from the Topshop sale plus discount (gotta love being a student) so I didn’t have to feel guilty about buying them when I’m as poor as I am right now.

But in the past month since I’ve actually realised the pain I’ve put my poor bank account through I’ve learnt some good tips for saving:

Never go shopping in your frees. Since my uni is in town my friends and I have an awful habit of going to Costa or browsing shops in our frees. Do I really need that cheese and tomato toastie and skinny vanilla late when I’ve got supplies at home? Do I really need this jumper to add to my ever-growing collection when I literally have no space in my wardrobe? No. It’s the boredom making me do it. Do something productive in your free time like spending an hour in the library or squeezing in a gym session.
Shop in Aldi’s. It might not have Heinz ketchup and granted it’s not quite Waitrose, but it’ll stop you buying unnecessary shit and pres will be a lot cheaper with their own-brand version of your favourite alcohol.
Pay for your milk in 1 pence coins. Yes, it’s embarrassing standing at the self-checkout for twenty minutes putting every individual coin into the slot but it gets rid of that stash building up in your purse and then you’ve got a pound spare for a jager bomb.
Shop at charity shops / sales / clothes swap with your mates. If you really can’t resist the temptation of new clothes and there aren’t any sales on, then scour the city for some vintage and charity shops. It might take a bit more time than waltzing into Topshop and selecting your size and walking to the checkout but it’s a lot cheaper and it’s way more interesting. You’ll walk out with something unique and classic that probably no one else will be wearing. If not and you’re stuck for something to wear on a night out borrow a dress from your flatmate and return the favour when they’re in the same situation.

Once again, thanks to Chloe for being my lil photographer.

Little Comets live @ Rescue Rooms Nottingham

The indie rock band return to Nottingham to promote their new album, Hope is Just a State of Mind, featuring hidden gems: Hippo Campus.

Edgy gig venue and club Rescue Rooms hosted Newcastle trio Little Comets on Monday night, who captivated fans with their new music and pleased the crowd by playing old favourites.

Doors opened at 6:30, and first up were support act Hippo Campus – the highlight of the night. I love discovering new music and especially finding bands that aren’t well known before anyone else! From Minnesota, USA, the rock band formed in 2013 and have since been slowly creeping onto the radar. They were incredibly enthusiastic and demonstrated particularly interesting and wavy dance moves, but this only added to the euphoric vibes they gave off. This amazing stage presence combined with their chilled out, quirky music contributed to the buzzing atmosphere which was contagious throughout the crowd.

It’s hard to decide which song I was drawn to most (they were all so catchy and likeable) but among my favourites of Hippo Campus’ songs were Suicide Saturday, South and Violet.

You can visit their website here, or listen to them on Spotify.

Little Comets kicked off to an already pumped up audience and reminded me why I like them so much with their down to earth chat and a better live sound than anything they could put across digitally. It’s always disappointing when a band you like are worse live than on your laptop, but this certainly was not the case.

One of my favourite aspects of the band was their style, admittedly the rather jazzy jumper that guitarist Michael Coles was wearing (see below pic).

Little Comets consist of lead singer Robert Coles, guitarist and back up vocalist Michael Coles and bass guitarist Mathew Hall. Originally from Tyne&Wear, they released their debut single One Night in October in 2009 and have since released two albums, In Search of Elusive Little Comets and Life is Elsewhere.

Their new and third album was released on the 16th February and is now available on iTunes.Hope is Just a State of Mind is fitting with the abstractness of previous albums and theme of bubbly, eclectic fusions of sounds but with a more updated feel. I like Don’t Fool Yourself and Salt.

My all time Little Comets favourites are Joanna, Jennifer and One Night in October… and Dancing Song, obviously. They made a wise decision to play out on this and I managed to film it (ignore the very poor quality).

After such an impressive set and taster of their new album I would buy tickets to watch either bands again live in a heartbeat.

Faithful denim jacket

LEVI DENIM JACKET: Urban Renewal at UO // TRAINERS: Converse

NECKLACE: from my Mum’s jewellery box // RING: Vintage shop

I purchased this vintage Levi denim jacket from Urban Outfitter’s Urban Renewal section about three years ago and it has remained a staple in my wardrobe. It was about £50 but you can get them cheaper in places like Camden. I love anything oversized and comfy so it was instantly a good investment piece that I’d recommend everyone needs!

It works all year round – for festivals in the summer, but is also baggy enough to fit a warm jumper underneath in winter and still look cool. I love it dressed down with this casual outfit, denim always looks best with a stripey top and cons, and my corduroy skirt gives it a kind of 70s look.

Buy similar here:

P.S. Big up to Chloe Jacks for taking these pics x

Why records are the best

I love anything retro, so it’s fair to say that a Crosley Cruiser is my best Christmas present yet. Record players have made a big comeback and having one feels like I’ve been transported back to the 60s.

The sound quality is way better than anything you can get on your iPod or laptop – it’s a more raw and unprocessed form of music. Record players have a vintage aspect to them and add more interest to a room than a docking station. PLUS I’ve had so much fun already collecting vinyls because the excitement beats buying a CD or just downloading track from iTunes. You are actually forced to leave your room and scour vintage music shops to find a bargain (although if you’re really not feeling it you can obviously order online…).

My best buys so far have definitely been Jake Bugg, Shangri La and Blur at £10 each. I’m also obsessed with Amy Winehouse, so was ecstatic when I found Back to Black for £15. I always put my Eva Cassidy record on when I’m *trying* to do uni work because it’s the best chill out album ever.