Baby Blue Converse & the perfect comfy style.

In an attempt to wean myself away from wearing pumps every minute of the day, and to keep my beloved Maloles for best instead of wearing them all the time, I decided I needed to get a new pair of casual shoes with one of my ambassador vouchers. My Keds have become my (kill me for saying this!) "go to" trainers for knocking around in the garden or walking the dogs so I thought a similar pair, but for best, would be the solution.

Enter Converse One Star Low Profile Canvas Ox W (say that when you've had a drink!) which fit the bill perfectly. I originally wanted a grey pair which were sadly out of stock in my size and now seem to have disappeared, so I opted for my second choice which were the baby blue pair (c/o Sarenza).

I plan to style mine a la Rachel Bilson & co who are managing to pull off the casual look perfectly (all images via Google). I'm all for comfort so I'll be pairing mine with jeans, slouchy tees and scarves.

I only have one complaint and that is they're ever so slightly a tiny bit snug. I ordered a size smaller as the Converse that I own (that I've had for donkeys years) are my regular size and it has always annoyed me that they were a little too roomy. At a size 7 and a lover of leggings and skinny jeans if I can make my feet look smaller then I will, to avoid looking like a golf club!

Anywhoo, I love the colour and that they're not too boy-ish. They're the ideal alternative to white which I would keep white for about 5 minutes. If only the sun would shine they'd be the perfect casual Summer shoe!

One Star Low Profile Canvas Ox W by Converse c/o Sarenza

 

The unbeatable Chuck Taylor All Star from Converse has arrived at Sarenza! Made legendary by the NBA basketball player Chuck Taylor, it is still a must-have in the wardrobes of fashionistas and more traditional wearers alike. The Converse label celebrates its 100th anniversary this year. It was actually in 1917, in Massachusetts, that the first Converse saw the light of day — it was all black and only intended for basketball players. And so it was that for more than 40 years, Converse shoes were exclusively reserved for use in sports. Everything changed when Chuck Taylor decided to wear only Converse shoes for a whole season. From that point on, the spotlight was on the canvas sports shoe bearing the name of the basketball player: the Converse Chuck Taylor All Star became a must-have product. As a result, the Converse sports shoe is now a firm favourite in the fashion world and among ordinary people. Everyone from Keira Knightley to Naomi Watts—not forgetting all the fashion writers as well—has made the Converse shoe the pinnacle of fashion… At Sarenza.co.uk, we ascribe to this easy fashion!

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Stars & silk string.

After a brief break from running the Lily loves Lola shops on Etsy and bigcartel they're open again and I've added a couple of new things too which I thought I would share with you on here.

I have been playing around with some silk string which I have in red and golden yellow. It makes such a nice change from the cotton cord as it's much more delicate and easier to add fastenings on.

I have added a 'lucky star' bracelet which features 7 tiny star charms and has a lobster clasp fastening. My bracelet measures 16cm in length from end to end and is a perfect fit for my small wrists. If you'd like one of these they're priced at £4.50 each and I can make them to fit your wrists perfectly, just let me know your measurements during the checkout process.

I'm going to have a think about other combinations of string and charms that I can make but if you have any good ideas or suggestions please do let me know.

I also have a few old favourites still on the go, which include the tiny wishbone and tiny cross friendship bracelets. They're only £2.50 each and can either be tied on permanently and worn until the cotton wears away or just tied with a bow which gives you the option to take them off and on as you please.

Is there any colour of cotton or string you think I should stock? Navy blue? Grey? White? I've tried to cover all angles but if there is a colour you'd like to see please let me know.

I'm still making the beaded wishbone bracelets which come in mint green, lilac or pink. I have other coloured beads including smoky grey but I haven't had chance to get them into my shops but they will be there very soon.

If you'd like to buy a larger quantity of bracelets perhaps for gifts or for yourself to layer up (which I personally think looks fab!) please contact me via Etsy as I'm happy to give a discount for larger orders.

Happy browsing! Have a lovely Sunday.

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'&'

Another day, another cross stitch. I ordered the kit for this ampersand design a few weeks ago from The Shop at Number 57 which I stumbled upon not long before. I've been eyeing up pretty much everything they sell, especially the cross stitch kits, since I found the shop and I love the design/feel of the website very much so!

My order arrived swiftly and was wrapped up so nicely. The ribbon it was wrapped in has been well and truly stashed away to use again another day.

The instructions and chart that come with the kit are brilliant. They cover everything you need to know as a newbie, and even though I know what I'm doing I picked up a few tips myself after having a read through. The kits would make great gifts for a friend or they're ideal to buy if you haven't cross stitched before and you don't quite know where to start.

This is the first design I have stitched which has used only one colour of thread and I did find that I had to pick it up and put it down, and stitch little and often, otherwise it got a little bit boring.

However, saying that I am really pleased with the finished result and it will look great on our new sideboard when Next Home finally get it back in stock (this prompted me to check the website and they have it - hurrah!) For now it lives on our bookcase amongst my other favourite bits and bobs (including the typewriter in the background which I picked up a couple of weeks ago).

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Life lately (through Instagram) #5

The other weekend we popped into Chesterfield which isn't too far from where we live. I fancied a look around a few charity shops and a nosy somewhere different for a change. I was so pleased to pick up a Cornishware pot from the RSPCA shop along with a crochet blanket. The pot is just right for holding our utensils and is right at home amongst our other bits of Cornishware.

I must make more of an effort to visit charity shops to hunt for bargains, but I find them very hit and miss. Some are packed full of lovely things whereas others seem to be mainly mothballs..

I'm fully in the swing of being a vegetarian now and I just wish I had done it sooner. I have even discovered that I prefer the Veggie Percy's to the regular ones. Hurrah!

I'm very good at diligently checking labels to see whether I can eat the contents and am often surprised at things that contain animal bits which you wouldn't automatically assume! Yuck. Anyway I'm enjoying my increased intake of veg and things like chickpeas as well as hunting for tasty vegetarian recipes to try.

I have been finding work very stressful recently and therefore I have been making more of an effort to make my spare time as enjoyable and relaxing as possible. I do find it hard to relax, and I'm not sure I ever fully do apart from when I'm asleep, but I have been trying nonetheless.

To relax I enjoy cross stitching, having a bubble bath, reading magazines, having a cuddle with Lily and Lola, or watching a film or tv series with Jonathan so I'm trying to squeeze in more time for those things. After all work isn't very important (or at least my job isn't) and it's not worth feeling unwell over.

We've got some lovely things planned for all of the weekends in July so there's plenty for us to look forward to: seeing family lots, my best friend's hen night, taking part in Race for Life, and not forgetting TRYING TO RELAX :)

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First a "super" wedding.. now a "super" cross stitch.

You may have seen the blog post I did on the wedding we went to in Sheffield a few weeks ago at the Botanical Gardens. The bride and groom are comic book enthusiasts and love all manner of superheroes and heroines.

When I found the weelittlestitches shop on Etsy I immediately wanted to make all of the patterns. After sharing the shop with Jonathan who declared he would learn how to cross stitch because they were so awesome (he hasn't btw!) I bought 3 patterns.

We decided it would be a nice idea to make something for the bride and groom for when they return from their 3 week American road trip (not jealous one bit...) using the Justice League of America pattern that I purchased.

I took the Superman and Wonder Woman figures and cross stitched them onto some white evenweave fabric using the colours on the chart (I used DMC thread). I added their names and the date of the wedding using a simple back stitch and voila! One Ikea frame later and I think it looks rather good, even if I do say so myself.

The bride returns to work tomorrow after 3 weeks off so hopefully a little present will cheer her up.

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