Carnival Baby

On Monday I went to Carnival with three of ma besties;

Laura Kennedy- My favourite blondie/ ditzy sister from another mister

Aggie Pop- My quirky little Polish babe with the coolest name I know

Charlotte Piccio- My Asian twin/ new blogging buddy woop! Check out her wonderful blog here;

Charlotte's Edit

Outfit of the Day

I wore a bit of a combo of the previous Carnival outfit ideas that I posted.

I wanted to wear shorts as it was beauuutiful weather, but decided that the sparkly ones were more like knickers, and as much as I enjoy prancing around my room naked, or inappropriately getting my tits out in public places, perhaps Carnival wasn’t the best place for a Nish style bum flash.

These are the only pictures where you can really see the full outfit (I forgot to take a clear one). My bad!

Top- Topshop 

Shorts- Topshop

Boots- New Look

Socks- Topshop

Bumbag/Fanny Pack- American Apparel

Headband- Primark

Necklace- Ebay

Hair & Makeup 

Pink Hair Dye- Superdrug's Instant Colour Hairspray, 'Pink Punch' (Wash in Wash Out)

Silver Face Glitter- Models Own

Eyelashes- Eylure Naturalites, No.100

Turquoise Glitter Eyeliner- Collection 2000

Lipstick- No.7 'Mischief'

Face Gems- Superdrug 'Nail Jewels'

Who knew that having  pink hair could make a girl so happy....?! May have to make this shit permanent. 

My Day!

This year’s carnival experience began with a game very similar to 'Where's Wally?', except the missing person in question was not the geeky little man in stripes. Very bad signal (Orange’s EE network is utter shite) led to a game of‘Where’s Laura Kennedy at?’

Aim of the game: to track down the blonde haired, big boobed beauty in a green top and denim shorts.

… this was one game we didn't want to play, and it sucked balls. I felt a bit like Mufasa in his search for Simba when he was trapped in the herd of wildebeests. No offence to Carnival-goers or anything…but some of them gave me the chills! Thankfully after a few fuzzy phone calls, a lot of pushing and shoving and the establishing of a clear meeting point (a pub...standard) we finally found her! Phew. 

The rest of the day could only get better. And it did. We danced to Michael Jackson, made friends with colourful beings, painted faces, hairy chested men and the police force and perved on Mark Lamarr kissing a girl whilst drinking free cocktails and bopping away to some jazzy music.

Mark Lamarr & ladyfriend 

I also drank rum out of a really weird looking pineapple and pretended I was on a tropical Island...
the delicious aromas of jerk chicken and meaty goodness made up for the fact there was no sand, sea or...the other S word! 

Highlights:

1) Being with all the girrrrrls 
...minus Zoe of course who we couldn't find :(

2) Charlotte’s epic fall...she was a trooper

Action shot

3) The Atmosphere

So much colour!

Bootylicious

Shake yo body like a belly dancer

4) One Direction's Apperance
...okay, so they appeared on my arm, but still. Aggie bought me a 1D sticker set which came with a heart shaped lollipop. I loved it and I'm not ashamed to admit it.

5) The Food...
to be specific, the KFC and Pizza Express that we munched afterwards. Standard fatties. 

Biggest Regret:

Not arriving earlier. By the time we found Laura it was already 3:30pm, so we only really had a few hours of crazy time.

Carnival 2014, see ya there bright and early.

XOXO

Pizza & Partying!

The title of this post is pretty self- explanatory. Two of my favourite things to sum up my favourite day of the week, Saturday! 

Pizza, the way to a woman's heart 
(or mine anyway). 

On the bank holiday Saturday just gone, my fam and I managed to avoid the usual debate that occurs whenever we organise to go out for dinner. My brother will usually opt for a Thai whilst my sister argues that she's sick of Thai red curry and suggests the local Persian (which my brother hates). Then my dad proposes that a Japanese is the answer, ignoring the fact my siblings utterly despise sushi. And although I like pretty much any food going, I always get involved, probably just to be difficult, unlike my mum who sits patiently waiting for the ultimate decision to be made... 'THAI IT IS'. And this is the standard O'Connor procedure.  

This Saturday, our decision was made easy. Following last weekends attempt to branch out, we decided to go for a pizza, and we discovered ...

'Franco Manca' pizzas.

Oh my god...these babies are like slices of heaven in your mouth. The pizza is made from slow-rising sourdough which requires a minimum of 20 hours to rise. In other words, they are literally orgasmic. They make Pizza Express pizza's taste like Sainsbury's basics in comparison. Oh, and to top it all off, they are half the price, just sayin'. 

Loving life 

Party Time

After pizza I went on to meet Caroline (my ex boyfriends sister) for drinks and a boogie. Don't ask how we became such good friends, as I'm not quite sure myself. But she's absolutely laaavly.

We didn't really have an exact plan but ended up in Vodka revs and then a club in Clapham called Aquum. And then back to mine where more pizza was ordered. 

Two things I learnt that night:

1) There is such a thing as too much pizza. Pukee

2) Random nights are the best nights 

Going to post about my carnival experience tomorrow! 

XOXO

Fruit Salad Nails

Yesterday I was feeling creative so decided to transform my hands into a very yummy fruit salad. Now every time I look at my nails I want to eat them. Lucky for me I have never been a nail biter, or I'd have none left.

Sweet like Tropicana
Perfect for Carnival!

The pineapples have smudged and now resemble something closer to scrambled eggs with spinach. 

Shit happens. 

XOXO

Three Carnival Outfits, Two Days, One Girl.

BOOOOM!

It's Carnival time people! Unfortunately I am missing out on the celebrations today and am a tad annoyed as I thought it was meant to rain, but it's actually looking pretty damn sunny, or at least I think it is judging by the rays beaming through my shutters. (I should really get out of bed, but am a sleepy hungover mess. Story of my life). Oh well, nothing my sisters homemade apple and oatmeal cookies won't sort out <3  

Still can't decide what to wear tomorrow! I've put together a few more ideas here :) 

Topshop Child

Top- Topshop

Skirt- Topshop 

Aztec Ting

Top- Topshop

Leggings- Brandy Melville

Shoes- New Look

Lipstick- Mac

Tattoo- Made in Thailand

Queen of Coral 

Dress- Missguided

Shoes-Primark

Lipstick- No7

Large Sock Bun- Primark

Nail art post to follow shortly!

XOXO

Who Wears Short Shorts? Nish Wears Short Shorts.

...2 DAYS TILL THE CARNIVAL MAYHEM BEGINS!

This post is pretty simple and can be summed up in two words;

GLITTERY SHORTS! 

Once upon a time, between the ages of 16 and 21, particularly during my uni years, I was obsessed with wearing shorts. More obsessed than an Irishman with Guinness, than Kim with Kanye, than Micky with Minnie, than Directioners with One Direction (I guess I can't really talk with that one)...but you catch my drift. Every shop I walked into, I was drawn to the shorts, especially anything bright, sparkly, glittery and colourful.
And the smaller, the better! I can't count the number of times I used to leave for a night out in something which would've made Eve appear fully clothed. And this was all year round. Sometimes I'd see a snowman or two on my way to the bus stop. Crazy shit, I know.

I like to think I've broadened my horizons when it comes to covering my bottom half nowadays...but for the purposes of Carnival, these glittery badboys have made a reappearance, and in my eyes they are completely justified!

Look One
I wish I was a Punk Rocker with Flowers in my Hair  

As you would've probably guessed, I LOVE the colour pink. 

Top- Topshop

Shorts- Asos

Shoes- New Look

Headband- Primark 

Look Two

Shine Bright Like a Diamond, Rhi Rhi Styleeey

Jumper- Boutique shop in Bristol
Shorts- Topshop
Boots- New Look
Socks- Topshop
Headband- Primark

I'm ready for a snooze so I won't drag out this post, but you know what they say, a picture says a thousand words!

Will post a few more outfit ideas tomorrow.
Catch ya in a bit! xoxo 

Carnival: A Lesson in History.

Today, the history geek in me shone through.

As I was daydreaming away about the weekend, I found myself wondering why Notting Hill Carnival actually exists...I mean if you think about it, it's a really random event. Why do thousands upon thousands of Brits annually take part and revel in what is essentially a celebration of all things Caribbean? 

So I took to Wikipedia, the mother of all knowledge, and here are a few things I learnt; 

• Notting Hill Carnival stems from an attempt to strengthen race relations in Britain and to promote cultural unity, as the Slave Trade/British Empire fucked that shit up. And the British were racist bumholes. 

• The London Hippies were key figures in organising the first ever Notting Hill Carnival back in 1966. Should've guessed! 

• The word 'Carnival' actually originates with the very first Italian Catholics who had their own festivities before Lent. In Latin, 'carnevale' means 'to put away the meat', so basically, they got as merry as Mary Poppins and as binged up as I do after a drunken night out, before  "sausage" and "beeeercan" became strictly off limits for 40 days and nights (terrible pun, I'm sorry).  

        Anyways...

 this little lesson has resulted in a very happy Nish for two reasons:

1) I am definitely all for celebrating the uniting of races! After all, I am a product of two past enemy races/cultures. Woop! 

2) Being a Catholic and all, it's only right that I follow through with the tradition of 'Carnival' and drink till I'm sick, eat till my heart's content, and most importantly, make sure I get enough sausage to last me the next 40 days! 

Only joking....or am I? 

Laterz for now. Style post tomorrow. xoxo 

BANK. HOLIDAY. CARNIVAL.

Good evening lovely people!

So it's Wednesday today, which means we're mid-way through the working week, which means that it's only two days until ... BANK . HOLIDAY. WEEKEND! Wooop woop, yippeeee, hooraayyy! I just let out a little scream of excitement.

Why? 

Because now that I'm 22 years of age and having graduated from university last year, I can finally say that I truly, completely, from the bottom of my heart understand the phrase ''living for the weekend". I am supposedly an adult. And yes Sean Kingston, that means I can no longer sleep all day and party all night, ya lucky sod. I suppose this was especially the case for me as I studied History at uni, and I think it's fair to say that lectures were as rare/ infrequent as a Starbucks barista spelling your name right (only yesterday my name was written as 'Mash'..REALLY?! I mean I know I'm half Irish but that doesn't make me a potato! )

But this Bank Holiday is even more exciting and special because it is NOTTING HILL CARNIVAL!  Ohhhh yes. The time of year has come again for London's largest street festival and I am so so excited. My favourite thing about this holiday, besides the badass music, amazing food, friendly faces, and the generally exciting, crazy, lively atmosphere, is the opportunity it offers to dress up.  To wear things you wouldn't usually wear in day-to-day life. To go all out. And to not be judged. 

Carnival 2012 <3

Drinking from the bottle

Can you blow my whistle baby?

I made a furry friend <3

Last year I didn't really wear an OTT outfit. Besides covering my face with a shit load of glitter (hard to see in the above pictures), the only other effort I really made was purchasing a whistle from a street merchandise seller, who must have had a field day when he came across our group of excitable, tipsy girls, getting all enthusiastic over something that not even my 7 year old cousin would realistically have any interest in if it was bought for her. 

But anyway, this year, I want to make more of an effort!

When I think of Carnival in relation to outfit ideas I think of one thing above all of the rest, and that is COLOUR. Whether it be bright, glittery, sparkly, neon, pastel. Colour, in my opinion, is a must! Basically if you end up resembling the rainbow by the time you leave the house then you've got it spot on. 

So in celebration of this wonderful celebration of the Caribbean people, and the massive piss-up that it brings, I've decided that I will post about different Carnival related style ideas throughout the week; outfits, accessories, nails, the works!

Watch this space :)

xoxo 

One Yellow Dress, Three Different Looks

Okay so I'm going to attempt to do my first style post but seeing as I'm no Einstein when it comes to technology, don't expect anything outstanding. But I've promised myself I will learn!

I was at work today and I couldn't stop thinking about my Missguided order that I knew would be delivered. I am a big fan of online shopping for two simple reasons:

1) The ease and simplicity of the whole thing; how with one click of that button, 'add to bag', results in a considerable amount of happiness and a whole new wardrobe (yes, I do get carried away).

2) The guilt-free feeling. For some unbeknown reason, the absence of physically handing over my card to a cashier behind the counter of the likes of Topshop means that I can convince myself that the majority of the months pay wasn't actually spent on clothes...so much so in fact that when those dreaded words 'card declined' pop up, I genuinely think that my account has been hacked. Denial denial denial. And I will probably continue with this denial for years to come. 

...BUT, the one thing I hate almost as much as the guilty feeling that comes with going to clothes stores (and the effort of dragging myself around the shops of Central London on a busy Saturday afternoon) is the inevitable disappointment that comes with online shopping. Like when the beautiful coral dress you ordered ends up making you resemble something less Cara Delevingne-esque and more Tigger from Winnie the Pooh. FAIL.

So anyway, I ordered this yellow dress on the off chance that it might possibly turn out as pretty and well-made as it looks on the website. And I was extremely happy with it so thought I'd do a post of three different looks I've composed:

Casual Chick

Dress- Missguided 

Shirt- Primark

Necklace- Topshop

Shoes- Nike

Watch- Michael Kors

Ring- Topshop 

Sunglasses- Topshop

Party Bitch

Dress- Missguided

Shoes- Missguided

Watch- Michael Kors 

Earrings- Primark 

Uptown Girl

Dress- Missguided

Blazer- Primark

Shoes- Primark

Watch- Michael Kors 

Here is the link to the dress - Missguided Yellow Bodycon Dress ...not bad for £19.99! It also comes in mint but I am loving yellow at the moment...especially with the recent heatwave. When I wear it I feel like the sun, and that makes me happy :)

And now it's bedtime for me...two day hangovers are not the one. I guess I should expect it now that I'm 22...I can't help but feel old!

Nighty night for now

xoxo