What Laura did next

Last week I went to visit my lovely friend Natasha in Madrid. I spent two days being a ‘local’ and getting introduced to the Madrid lifestyle. We ate a lot of tapas and walked a lot through the city streets. The weather was warm and very sunny. There were so many things to photograph - the bulidings, street art and the amazing food!

We managed to do a little bit of shopping, visiting stores like Zara which is slightly cheaper over in Spain due to it being a Spanish brand. I bought a gorgeous black sheer maxi skirt with a pleated panel down the front which I can’t wait to wear. I also visited a make-up store called Kiko, which is originally from Italy. It is full of make up in the most amazing colours! It’s a shame that you can’t buy it over here as it is very reasonably priced and there is so much choice. There was also a shop called Lobo, a family run shop which mainly sells espadrilles. They had them in every colour and were so cheap! But the shop was very very busy, so I didn’t get a chance to purchase any.

We didn’t do too much sightseeing, but we did have a lovely walk around the Retiro Park which is massive! We also went to the Palace and the San Miguel Mercado, a big indoor food market where everyone goes to eat and drink. It was very very busy, so we decided to go on a Tapas bar crawl instead – which was very yummy!

Madrid was a lovely city, full of very friendly people and a laidback atmosphere. I can see why my friend decided to move there. We ate a lot of Tapas and drank a lot of cava and wine due to it cheaper than soft drinks over there!

I’ll definitely go back at some point, mainly to buy my espadrilles from Lobo and lots of Spanish food!

L x

I was lucky enough to be invited by the lovely people at Kurt Geiger, to preview their SS12 Women’s collection at their Mayfair boutique on Grafton Street in London.  I’m a big Kurt Geiger fan, so over a cup of tea and some very cute gingerbread biscuits, I fell in love with pretty much everything the brand are offering for next season!

The collection is made up of a multitude of yumminess from their signature stilettos in soft pastel shades. For a more ‘edgy’ look, patent leathers and see-through Perspex come in the form of some very sexy high heels. There are also some gorgeous printed satin wedges, embellished gladiator sandals and heels, thin-heeled stiletto mules and printed ballet slippers.

I found myself being drawn to the studded high tops and fluro coloured peep toe stilettos with glitter soles the most. They are most definitely on my wish list!

One of the most exciting pieces of news from the team at Kurt Geiger, is that they are introducing the first ever bikini into their ‘Everything but the Dress’ collection. The gorgeous two-piece style features a psychedelic print, which has also been applied to accessories such as a make-up bag and cute espadrilles.

The brand is also launching a sunglasses collection, which has been designed in-house. The handmade, acetate styles will be available in shades including tortoiseshell, blue, black and transparent pink. I was lucky enough to try each style on and I can say that they are gorgeous!  The lovely KG team also gifted each person a pair of sunglasses so I cannot wait to receive the pair I chose!

I managed to take a lot of photos (I will post the rest of them up in a gallery!) and was given a very bright pink Perspex clutch, which included a press release and a USB stick with all the images on. VERY helpful!

The collection as a whole was very inspiring and strong and as I sit here typing in my cozy knitwear wearing my chunky black boots, I’m already beginning to wish for the new season to arrive – hurry up summer!

L x

Packing for Madrid. Lots of clashing prints

One of the top footwear brands for shoe lovers - Kurt Geiger launched an accessory collection called ‘Everything but the Dress’ back in September. 

I was lucky enough to have the ‘snake-print’ tote given to me as a birthday present and I haven’t stopped using it! It has enough room to be used as an overnight bag, but at the same time, I can use it every day without it looking too empty. The bag itself features a hook-clasp attachment, an interior pocket and carry handles. The bag in my photos is ‘nude’ but it also comes in Grey and Purple.

The ‘Everything but the Dress’ collection consists of bags, purses, jewellery, hats, gloves, scarves and sunglasses.

More than just beautiful arm-candy, you can tell that the Kurt Geiger design team have produced a functional and practical bag collection for the consumer. It consists of a variety of totes, messengers, oversized clutches and also some very sophisticated evening bags. The jewellery collection includes bracelets, earrings, hair accessories, necklaces and rings.

Not sure you’ve guessed, but I have my eye on a number of items from the collection. Including, the star-print scarf, the large perspex pouch  and the Jinette bracelet. I still have my discount card from the December issue of ELLE magazine, so I may have to pay a visit to my local store, or go online!

L x