El Corte Ingles

El Corte Ingles is the main place to shop in Madrid. Much like Selfridges here in London, all of the biggest designer names can be found there and, as you can see from these photos of the windows, this is a place that also treats fashion like art and shopping like a really exciting, theatrical experience.

Snapshots of Madrid Part 2

Here are some more funky photos of my new favourite city.

Snapshots of Madrid

Right, have borrowed a laptop and am back in action at last. Here are the photos from my mini-break in Madrid!

Broken Laptop, Broken Heart

Sorry for the late posting of Madrid-related images, or anything else for that matter. My laptop has gone and died on me and I am writing this to you from a dear friend's machine. Despite my 'buy this designer bag' and 'buy these designer shoes' advice, I have no collateral of my own and therefore cannot even afford to replace said laptop. I will beg, borrow and steal technology as I attempt to get my old love fixed/replaced but in the meantime, please bear with me gorgeous reader! Apple, if any of you are reading this, please, please, please give me a shiny new I-Book for free - I will make it well worth your while...

Ash Cloud

Thanks to the Icelandic ash cloud, the possibility of getting "stuck" on holiday seems increasingly real. I'd dearly love to say this filled me with sorrow but if I'm honest, I'd much prefer to go and watch Flamenco dancing and eat tapas tonight rather than travelling home from Luton Airport at who-knows-what-time in the morning. We'll see what happens. In the meantime, I will continue to photograph the most stylish parts of Madrid for your viewing pleasure.

An E-Postcard from Madrid

Readers, I am writing from sunny(ish) Madrid! It´s so beautiful here and today I have been all around the city. I have window-shopped and danced in the streets of Gran Via, seen Sol and visited Templo Deboro with its breathtaking views. On the way there, we took an (unintentional) detour through a park near some cable cars and also saw the somewhat disturbing sight of a middle-aged couple, ahem, enjoying each other´s company semi-naked from the waist down in full view of my friend Niels and I.

This aside, Madrid seems to be a very stylish and sophisticated place with beautiful palaces (see above) and a warm, happy attitude.

As I write this, my companions are indulging in a came of ´Cow Trade´which seems to be a rather heated game involving the swapping of animal-based cards. Then we are going to a bar where beers are marvellously 60p per pint. When I come home I will post my many photographs and go on a vegetarian diet as all meat will pale in quality compared to the hams and Chorizo sampled here. Adios!

Packing Part One: Destination Haircare

I am fairly happy to admit that shopping for holiday bits and bobs is one of my absolute favourite pre-getaway 'chores.' Little mini bottles of things make me feel especially excited so I was chuffed to find that Toni & Guy's latest offering includes lots of new hair-related concoctions.

My personal favourites? The Iron-It Heat Defence Spray (50ml) and the Rapid Response Leave-in Conditioner (75ml) which are both perfect for looking after your locks in hotter-than-England (not difficult) type destinations.

Stock up on your fun minis at Boots. There are plenty to choose from. Too recession-busted to get away? I feel your pain. These bottles are really pocket-friendly though (each being around the £2 mark) and they'll cheer you up almost as much if used in a London shower as they would in a St Tropez based one.

http://www.boots.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CatalogSearchResultView?storeId=10052&catalogId=11051&langId=-1&pageSize=12&beginIndex=0&sType=SimpleSearch&resultCatEntryType=2&searchTerm=toni+and+guy&x=7&y=9

I'm packing these bad boys into my Dad's vintage Adidas holdall.

Don't forget your toothbrush!

Dating Drama with Rivington Rouge

It's time for the second installment from Fashion Slant's girl-about-town, Ms Rivington Rouge. Lock up your Grandpas girls...

Bedding Down

At the moment, I am working at a rather curious job that often sees me lying on a bed for hours at a time, which to some passers by may be seen as somewhat suggestive. Firstly, let me assure you, I am merely reading at work on a bed (which is there more for publicity than anything else). For some reason, my bored expression and risqué position seem to invite a plethora of oddballs to come and shoot the breeze with me.

I would like to amend my previous statement that, “I never get asked out on dates,” to; “I never get asked out on dates by men even close to my age” because apparently men old enough to be my grandfather like the look of me.

Let me set the scene a bit,…

I’m lying on the bed (as mentioned above) and I look up from my book and I see this man hovering, rather oddly by the entrance. I smile, give a cursory laugh at the ridiculous nature of my job and shrug my shoulders in a, “Eh, what can you do?” kind of manner. He takes the bait sadly, (I wasn’t aware I was fishing; who knew?) and says, “I used to deal in antiques,” I respond by telling him, nicely I think, “Really, must have been interesting?” and he then whips out his reading glasses to give the bed a full on inspection, which somehow he uses to start a rather laborious conversation with me. I nod, smile and ask him some questions and then he says to my amusement, “I’m sorry, did I just hear you say you’d have a drink with me after work? My hearing sometimes fails me.” I was taken aback slightly by his nerve so start laughing, I mean what would you do in this situation? I then try to come up with a reason why I can’t join him for a drink after work.

He then continues to chat to me for a further five minutes and then just like that, saunters over to the side of the bed and sticks his hand out to shake mine. I, in a rather flustered state (most likely due to the fact that I never get asked out) told him, “Wow, you have big hands,” to which he rather creepily replied, “You know what they say about big hands,” and I said, “No, what’s that?” and he goes, “big feet and you know…!” while looking at his penis. Disgusted at the thought of him even mentioning he has a penis, I proceeded to giggle in such a manner I frankly embarrass myself. This not getting asked out business is really throwing me for a loop if I get flustered around a man like this. Then he says to me, “We’re already half way to finding out, with you lying on that bed like that,” seriously gramps? Thankfully, he left after that parting blow, and I decided I had better stay behind the desk in future.

The most interesting thing about this slightly ludicrous situation was that this man, despite being at least twice my age actually had the balls to ask me out. Had he been a bit closer in age, I may have gone out with him - if only for his sheer audacity.

Obviously this guy has decades on anyone I would normally be attracted to and probably has experience of being rejected countless times over the years but despite all this he still decided to put himself out on a limb. This begs the question: This older man had more boldness than the majority of the men I meet, so what exactly are men in London so afraid of? Is it because we’ve been raised to do things ‘properly’ (whatever that may be). Or is it because some challenging women have made it more difficult and scary for men to summon their courage? What exactly are they so afraid of? In a country that prides itself on propriety and doing things traditionally, where have the basics of courtship disappeared to?

Bella Freud; Style Inspiration

I love knitwear designer Bella Freud's unique style. That kind of irreverent quirkiness, jumpers with catchy slogans (her own designs) and cool print combinations work for her in a way they may not for others. Visit Bella's website, http://www.bellafreud.co.uk/ or Net a Porter http://www.net-a-porter.com/Shop/Designers/Bella_Freud to attempt the look yourself. Like Sofia Coppola (another of my brunette style inspirations!) she leaves her hair and make-up well enough alone to allow the clothes to do the talking. I strive for this but simply. Cannot. Put. The. Eyeliner. Down.

The Main Men

Who else is completely sick of hearing about what the Clegg/Brown/Cameron wives are wearing? How exactly is this going to affect the state of the country's economy? Their clothes are mostly unimaginative and rubbish anyway. Mainly out of spite, here are three pictures of the people that actually matter; they may not be that glamorous but in this single political instance on Fashion Slant, who really cares?