Going Gaga.

I have finally found another 5 minutes to blast out a blog post while away, so here comes another pre-written one.. If you want to know how my holiday is going, well it is amazing. And I haven't even bought anything. We have moved on to the island of Sulawesi and are ready to go see lots of traditional buildings and ceremonies - expect lots of photos when I get home!

You may or may not have noticed my total love and adoration for Lady Gaga, and you might be aware that I am going to see her at the Born This Way Ball in September with my best friend.. Well, a big part of getting ready to "ball" with Mothermonster is going to be getting ready, so my outfit must be perfect. This is me rationalizing my latest purchase..

Heels - soyoushoes.com

That's right, GAGA SHOES. Well, not officially. But that is what I call these fierce, fabulous heels - if heels is the right word considering they are heel-less! Anyway, they are in the style of Gaga herself who has often worn these bemusing heel-less heels, especially so thanks to the studs all over. And honestly, they are a lot easier to walk in than they look! These are going to form the basis of my BTWB outfit, even if I do have to take them off at some point in the queueing process.

What do you think of them? These are possibly another opinion-dividing purchase - in true Marmite style they will either be loved or hated. I adore them, but do you think they are just too much?

Love and kisses, Tara xox

Home improvements.

This is a bit of first here because I am going to post about some recent modifications to my home environment - obviously you don't have the 'before' pictures for comparison but you can see what I have done now.. It sounds a lot more impressive than it is, so please bear in mind that I am a student, living at home with my parents and only in control of my actual room, and only in so far as I can put new things on the walls. Which is what I have done! Firstly I have used some more of my birthday presents next to my bed..

Yes, I finally got around to hanging up my Kylie autograph because my parents framed it for me for my birthday! I love it, and now the light etc won't make it fade. Perfect. I also got a Breakfast At Tiffany's poster from them - they know me very well, since that is my favourite film and a large part of me wants to be Audrey Hepburn. Lastly, I picked up this Lady Gaga poster myself in town and I adore it. It is from the Monster Ball tour and makes me even more excited for the Born This Way Ball. I really love my wall now that it has three of my icons on it!

As well as putting up some gorgeous pictures I have put up a handy jewellery storage solution - well when I say I, I really mean that I had the idea and my dad made it and installed it..

For years I have found that I have so many necklaces that if I store them in a box or anything they just get tangled up and I have to spend hours every week or so untangling them, so I tried to come up with a better way to store them. My idea was this necklace rack - yes, it makes my room look a little bit like a shop I will admit, but it really does keep them separate. It also makes it really easy to see which necklaces I have, which makes choosing my accessories easier. All it is is one large piece of wood for the backing, a smaller one of the same length for the higher rail and then quite a few cylindrical 'pegs' glued in at a slight angle to keep the necklaces on. I'm not going to pretend to tell you how to make it since I am a complete hazard when it comes to DIY, but anyone who is good at making things should be able to knock one up.

And those are my highly exciting home improvements - it may not seem like much of a difference but they really do make my room a lot more "me", and the necklace rack is incredibly useful and practical.

Love and kisses, Tara xox

Bits & pieces.

Here is the perfect example of how completely scatter-brained and slapdash I am getting in pretty much every area of my life (I am blaming exam-season pressure) - this post is a bit of a random one compiled of odds and ends that I had every intention of blogging in the last few weeks and just didn't get around to. I kind of feel like it would be better to leave these things un-blogged, but the perfectionist in me with her mild OCD is insisting that I catch up, and catch up now. And to be fair, it is bothering me a little.

So first up is a random little purchase I made in Topshop sometime last week..

These gorgeous neon-pink hotpants were such a bargain for Topshop and they caught my eye as soon as I walked in to the store! I literally could not resist them. I adore the bright colour, which will be perfect for injecting a bit of summer into my wardrobe from now on. Also, how much do they look like Kylie's encore shorts from the Anti Tour? These are quite similar to a pair of raspberry shorts from Topshop that I already own, which is why I didn't even have to try them on to know they would suit me. Cannot wait to break these out, probably with tights for now..

Next is this cute hairclip that I picked up in Primark for some ridiculously cheap price. This probably means the quality is iffy at best, but I just wanted a different way to style my hair up and if it doesn't work I won't feel bad about wasting money this way. If the heat ever properly kicks in I will need new ways to put my hair up and this clip is super-cute. I love the scalloped edges and the vintage-style floral print. If this works out for me, I think I'll be getting some more of these!

Now I'm continuing my Kylie-craze by finally posting photos of the merchandise I bought. I literally fought my way over to the stand to get these, and the pictures have been sitting on my memory card for over a week, unblogged.

Firstly these cute little button badges, I couldn't resist! There were 4 in the set but I actually gave 2 to Becca so we could have some each. 

I got this cute canvas bag because I can always use a good bag for shopping etc. I have already used this several times because it is so roomy - perfect for throwing my things in and going! I don't care if I look like a crazy fan - that's just me.

My last piece of merch was this gorgeous t-shirt, which you have already seen me wearing. I buy a t-shirt from nearly every concert I go to, but this one is one of the only ones I wear in public! I am not usually a tee girl, but I make an exception for Kylie's gorgeous face.

Finally, my last little bit of catching up comes in the form of something even more beautiful than everything so far put together. You remember I got all overexcited because we met Kylie last Monday before one of the shows, and I gave her a letter? Well, I got my signed poster back in the post earlier this week!

We are currently scoping out a frame for this so that the writing doesn't fade, I want to keep it fresh forever! This is now one of my most prized possessions (I'm a bit pathetic aren't I?) and it made me so happy to get it back.

One last piece of news - on September 11th, Becca and I will be at the Born This Way Ball seeing Lady Gaga! This is a week full of good news! I can't wait for this tour, to see the outfits, hear the music, and be inspired by being in the same room as Stefani Germanotta.

Love and kisses, Tara xox

Because we're little monsters.

I feel kind of bad because this post is literally going to be more life-based, rather than fashion-oriented, and you probably don't care that much about some random 17-year-old's life. Not that my wardrobe can be of that much interest either, but ah well.. a bit of trend analysis is always fun. But not today - today I have been inspired by the announcement that tickets for Lady Gaga's Born This Way Ball go on sale on Friday to put up the photos from my weekend with Becca! We had been planning for Born This Way for so long that suddenly having that Kylie weekend was literally amazing.

So don't say you haven't been warned - this post contains many stupid, irrelevant, gorgeous photos of me and my best friend. I will do a quick run-down of what I was wearing for the photos, but this is mostly self-indulgence.. and sheer laziness because I am lacking the motivation to post my shopping haul tonight - it will be up tomorrow!

All dressed up and ready for Kylie!

We are clearly Britain's next top models..

Posing with our (unnecessary) glasses.

Getting our Gaga on.

We just came to say hey.

Aren't we such posers!

This is honestly my favourite photo at the moment. Love.

Simply because Becca's a babe.

Paws up!

Okay, to try and make this fashion-y here is the lowdown on my outfit..

Top - Primark; Jeans - H&M; Bracelets - Accessorize & Lola Rose; Necklace - Accessorize; Earrings - Accessorize; Ring - Topshop.

This was just a simple, hanging-out-around-the-house outfit, one of the least complex you will ever see me in. But I like the way the gold jeans make it special, and a Gaga top is always anything but boring. It was the tour announcement that made me think of these since we had both got our Gaga on for this little snapping session.. I also just want to say how much I love Becca's gorgeous tie-dye shorts. And just to clarify, no we're not vain - we just love a bit of photography! As Lady Gaga says "nothing's wrong with being just a little bit vain, we need a little pretty cause this country's insane" (in the song 'Fashion').

I will be back on top fashion form tomorrow, with my mini haul from the shopping trip today - but I hope you enjoyed my little bit of vanity!

Love and kisses, Tara xox

Whoever invented Mondays is not my friend.

Oh how I love Mondays. Not. They are probably my least favourite day of the week, since I have a full college day from 9am-4.30pm, complete with French, Spanish & double History.. Welcome to my fun life. Anyway, I know I say this pretty much every college day, but I was really not feeling up for college today - so yet again I decided to dress a little larger than life to give me the motivation to keep me going!

Shawl - River Island; Top, Shoes, Tights & Ring - Primark; Shorts - Topshop; Bracelets - random collection from ASOS, Topshop, Lola Rose and various holidays to India & Indonesia.

This was another of my thrown-together outfits, with some of my slightly quirky separates. I absolutely love this baroque shawl from River Island, it is the perfect way to rev up a t-shirt & shorts combo, and that faux fur trim is so cosy & warm, which is perfect for transitional weather in England. I think we have actually started to break into that transfer from winter to spring, where the weather starts becoming almost bearable, and I am so glad about that. Spring fashion is not looking so out of place now!

One last comment about my outfit.. thrown-together it may have been but the starting point for it was my Lady Gaga top. I love this top because it is basically a giant photo of one of my idols, the incredible Stefani Germanotta, and not only is it a giant photo I can wear on my chest, it is a photo of the Born This Way cover - one of my favourite songs of all time. This is a chance to wear one of my obsessions literally on my chest, but still work fashion into it!

Love and kisses, Tara xox

Getting carried away.

You've heard all my moans about college, early mornings and the great British weather a million times, and I don't want every post on here to turn into a mini life rant, so instead of dwelling on any of that slightly depressing stuff I am just going to go off on a bit of an overexcited word vomit.. Warning, I may not be able to control my excitement at times - read on at the risk of some serious underlining, exclamation marks and severely garbled sentences.

Blazer - Asos; Dress - Internacionale; Shoes, Ring & Earrings - Topshop; Belt & Tights - Primark; Bracelet - Temporary Secretary.
Sorry about the blurry picture.. not blaming the photographer though (got that Mum?), it is probably my silly digital camera trying to be clever and not use flash, before making a hash of the shot. Clever. Anyway, today I admittedly went all back-to-black without even thinking about it. Usually I shy away from top-to-toe black, preferring to frame my brighter pieces with any black items, but today it just felt right as a combination. I think the thing that stops this outfit falling flat as boring is the detail - the block-white hemline, patterned tights, glitter pumps, pink snakeskin belt & bright lips definitely perk up the black and add detail. One thing that was always going for this outfit is that black is an eternally chic colour, which most fashion editors would swear by..

And here comes the excitement. Sometime in the morning, while I was being all studious in lessons I got a text from my friend with awesome news - Lady Gaga tweeted her stage set idea today! It looks incredible, and now I am ridiculously excited about the Born This Way Ball, it is literally going to be the night of my life. I am already planning how to get in the monsterpit with my gorgeous Becca, so we can get dragged out to meet Stefani.. okay, maybe I'm getting carried away! But it's going to be absolutely AMAZING. Just think of the fashion! And seeing one of my greatest inspirations up close...

Here is the stage design... I'm not even close to Christian/religious and I am suffering heart palpitations.
 

As if that wasn't enough, I also picked up this week's Grazia and saw a piece on the Mary Katrantzou for Topshop collection that drops in ten days time. The pieces look absolutely incredible, so creative, so unique and pretty similar to some of her catwalk collections. There is no question, I have to have something from this collection. My friends probably thought the prices were still a bit ridiculous, but compared to the real Katrantzou deal all of the items are a complete steal. I already have my eye on a few dresses, and possibly a top, but unfortunately pictures are evading me. Go buy Grazia! Oh, and I also saw a few photos from the Marni for H&M collection - not as incredible as the Mary Katrantzou collaboration, but still definitely beautiful enough to make me want to cyber-stalk the website on the 8th March in the hope of picking up a piece or two. 

The combined excitement of the two fashion collections would probably have been enough to send me into hyperventilation (and honestly, they did - don't judge me), but then add in the Born This Way Ball and the promise of a visit with my lovely Becca, and I am literally out-of-this-world euphoric. The anticipation may kill me. Love and kisses, Tara xox

When in doubt, go Gaga.

How did Monday roll around so quickly? Apparently my weekend has been totally swallowed up by work, a party and yet more work - fun, yes, but not so productive! At least this week is the last one before half term, which means half a chance of a good lie in, a chance to get my coursework under my belt and possibly some time to relax.. Just four more days. Since I was not really in the mood for a Monday today I hadn't really got any outfit ideas, so once again I fell back on pairing my separates...

Blazer - Topshop; Skirt - River Island; Top & Boots - Primark; Tights - New Look; Bracelets - Accessorize; Wing Ring - ASOS; Camera Ring - Temporary Secretary.
And by pairing my separates I mean breaking out the GAGA t-shirt! I bought it recently upon a complete whim, because I love a bit of Gaga, and hadn't gotten around to wearing it.. so when some outfit-related indecision struck it was one of the first things on my mind. Since it is Gaga, you've got to go a little quirky, so cue a masculine blazer, a 50s style full, hot-pink skirt, some starry tights and slightly mismatched chunky boots. This was only one interpretation of this rather awesome top though - I am already contemplating different ways to wear it... Watch this space. Love and kisses, Tara xox

Confessions of a shopaholic.

For the first time in about two weeks, I have been shopping! It might not sound like very long, but for me it felt like a lifetime.. I think I was actually experiencing withdrawal symptoms - excessive online browsing, compiling wishlists over and over, falling in love with clothes in magazines and even dreaming about shopping. I kid you not. It's official - I am an addict. Call Shopaholics Anonymous and see if they do house calls.

Going shopping today was very successful (meaning my purse is considerably emptier and my wardrobe a little fuller), and of course it required another outfit..

Shawl - River Island; Top - H&M; Jeans & Shoes - New Look; Bag - Tous; Necklace & Ring - Republic; Earrings - Topshop; Bracelet - Accessorize.

I'm not really channelling any particular look today, but if I had to try and describe my style here I would say fashion gypsy. The faux fur trimmed shawl and slightly OTT jewellery feel slightly traveller-ish, while the wedges, slightly boxy bag and lipstick feel distinctly more stylish, making this ensemble a slightly quirky mash-up. And somehow it works. I'm not sure if it is the tonal quality of the pieces, the fact that fashion itself is favouring those 'anything-goes' looks, or just a hefty dose of confidence as I walk around, but whatever the reason, I'm liking it. (Not to sound totally up myself or anything though..)

I said this shopping trip was a success, so here comes the rundown of my latest buys.. take a deep breath - we are heading into fashion-and-beauty-land & won't be coming up for air any time soon.

My spending kicked off with a bit of a beauty haul, beginning with Rimmel's Scandaleyes mascara. I have been seeing adverts for this forever (starring the gorgeous Georgia May Jagger), and have been sorely tempted to try it out, but I was held back by my long-standing devotion to Maybelline mascaras. Then I walked in to Superdrug and saw this little baby on sale - I was already contemplating getting a new mascara, and my mind was instantly made up. Stay tuned to hear just how good Scandaleyes really is..

And here is where I started to spend more than I anticipated... I had been on the lookout for a new lipstick recently, and had heard the Kate collection for Rimmel was good, so of course I went to check it out. The lipstick I had in mind was a bright, almost floral pink, and shade 02 fit the bill perfectly. Then I got carried away trying out the other shades on my hand and literally fell in love with shade 12 - the gorgeous almost orange-y coral colour is so striking that I had to have it! Now my lipstick collection is edging closer to being complete, and I cannot wait to work these colours with a fierce fashion pout.

Unintentional purchase number two strikes.. I was just browsing through New Look when I saw these stunning coral slipper-style flats. My eye was instantly drawn by the gorgeous colour, and I love the cute shape which feels almost vintage style. They also lean towards the pyjama party vibe that the catwalks were giving out recently, so I think these are going to be my NSBFs (New Shoe Best Friends).

I am a huge fan of the 50s references going on on the catwalk - everything about the era epitomises elegant, ladylike style with a heavy dose of fun print thrown in. The D&G SS'12 collection is currently the subject of a lot of my daydreams... Which is why I was most definitely searching for a new piece that channels the mid-century modern style, and this Topshop sun top certainly does that. The playful, graphically floral print is pure fun, while the slightly corseted style and straps put me in mind of 1950s holiday dressing - perfection.

The final stop on my shopping trip was Primark, where I will openly admit that I got a little carried away. I went in for new work shoes and came out with so much more.. Starting with this belt. I love skinny belts because they add an extra detail to outfits, but was unsure if I could pull off snakeskin. And this is the bonus of Primark - yes, it is cheap and can be poor quality, but if you aren't sure about something and just want to test out a trend then this is the place to go. You can just give something a go, and even if it isn't right for you the wallet-friendly prices mean you won't have wasted too much money. Result.

Another piece I want to test out is a silk scarf, so again I went to Primark for an affordable one that I can play around with. Silk scarves are a bit of a must-have accessory this season, being used for everything from headwear (again harking back to the 50s) and belts to shoes and actual dresses, so of course I had to get my hands on one. I love the classic blue tones and bold pattern of this one, and will be trying to work it in as many ways as possible - just to see how versatile it really is.

My final buy was upon total impulse. This impulse again struck in Primark, where I saw this Gaga top out of the corner of my eye and literally could not bring myself to walk away from it. It was such a bargain, and I love Lady Gaga so much (especially the Born This Way single and cover) that I simply had to have it. I even bought it a size or two too big because there were none in my size, but I wanted it that badly! Besides, tops like this often look better oversized.. that way they can be paired simply with jeans or leggings, or tucked into a high waist skirt or shorts casually. This is one buy that was not trend driven, it was simply down to my small obsession with Stefani Germanotta.

That's the end of my little shopping spree, and looking back it was definitely a good one! Like I said, I may now be lacking in money but my wardrobe just got that little bit chic-er. Which equals a successful day in my opinion. Now, it's getting late so I'd better cut this off.. but what do you think about my buys? Love and kisses, Tara xox

M-m-m-marry the night!

I absolutely cannot resist posting this. As you are probably aware, one of my icons is the incredible Lady Gaga, and if you are even half as much of a fan as I am, you will probably be aware of these two things..

First off, on a quick lunchtime trip to the shop my eye was caught by one thing - this month's issue of Elle, featuring a striking photo of the lady herself. Typically excited by these new images I grabbed my copy quickly and lost myself in the interview.

I literally love these photos of Stefani. As the reporter said in the interview, you don't see how beautiful she is when she is crawling out of a wrecked subway car, dripping blood, onstage. It is not until you strip back the theatrics a little that you can see how stunning she is - like here, the pastel colour palette really lets her shine. Of course, she isn't dressed totally pared-down. All of these dresses take more bravery than I have to wear, and she does wear some heel-less heels, so it isn't a total departure from the crazy, over-the-top Gaga we know and love.. There is still incredibly sheer fabric, gorgeous lace eye masks and an amazingly directional haircut - it just feels a little more simplified. 

I think it is the pastels that do it, they are so light and bright that she simply glows, and the shots all have a very clean, soft feel. They also make me ache for springtime, which is not good when we are heading into winter! Pastels always turn up on spring catwalks because they are so fresh and clean, which is why it feels so refreshing and fun to work them in December - also very fitting for the January issue. As well as the fashion, I love the strong, striking poses and expressions in all of the pictures (ex-photography student here, sorry), and it is the kind of shoot I would love to recreate. And then you get to the interview. Full of typically Germanotta revelations, like orgasms are good for your skin, this interview is a must read for any Little Monsters out there. I myself am a proud Little Monster, and am loving my fix of Mother Monster! Go get it!

The Gaga bonanza doesn't stop there though, upon arriving home and getting logged in to all my usual haunts (Blogger, Facebook, Twitter) I saw a link that again stopped me in my tracks... The Lady has released her video for Marry The Night! This was my favourite song from Born This Way, and the lyrics really resonate with me, so I have been waiting with baited breath to see how she would present it ever since it was announced as the next single...

This really is a crazy video, and I am not 100% sure that I understand all of the elements, but I love them. Every scene has been crafted perfectly. I especially like what Gaga called the Prelude Pathetique, which has been on Youtube for a while, and enjoyed the dance class part of the video. It is ridiculously long, but while watching it I was never bored, not even for a moment. Her outfits are typically creative, insane and beautiful all in one - even if she spends a lot of time naked. Or naked apart from gorgeous shoes. I love her efforts with the bedazzler and old denim, and her hair with that outfit was simply amazing. My favourite element of the video however was the element of truth. Of course, a video like this is the product of fantasy, surrealism to the extreme in the impracticality it presents, but the story being portrayed was that of her being dropped by her record label and the way she rose up from that. Not every scene is classically beautiful, there are moments that are dark and haunting. 

"I'm going to be a star. You know why? Because I have nothing left to lose."

Those were my favourite words of the narration. It promotes such a good attitude, that when you have nothing left you should stick to your dreams and come out fighting - don't let life get you down. Oh, I've gotten carried away with my love for this now. But anyway, watch it. It is artistically incredible.

I think you can all see how much I adore Stefani Germanotta, aka Lady Gaga. She is an artist in everything she does. And of course, this Gaga-packed day was beautiful for me. I am currently re-watching Marry The Night, and re-reading the Elle interview. Whilst dreaming of the day I am that brave. Love and kisses, Tara xox