she was born in a handbag, love left on a doorstep

To make the most of the bank holiday weekend (and get a little bit of a break from exams) I went to Brighton for the day on Saturday. It's only the third time I've ever been but for some reason I just feel so at home there...although that probably has something to do with the copious vintage shops sprawled all over the North Laines. It's just got such a lovely atmosphere, and is somewhat like Brick Lane but on a much, much larger scale (complete with multiple East London beards). 

Revision has been good to me in the sense that it has made me incapable of going out and spending money, so I felt I was definitely deserving of a day of retail therapy. I've also been in a bit of a clothes rut recently, and have found myself just wearing the same few outfits over and over again, so I felt I did really need to jazz up my wardrobe a little bit before Summer properly kicks in. I also need to stop wearing orange. Seriously, it is all I wear.

I wore my skirt and shoes from Rokit, shirt and gold vest from a car boot, a cardigan from Spitalfield's market, tights from H&M and socks from Topshop. The badge is from Camden market and the necklace is from Beyond Retro. The weather was, as usual, looking a little undesirable, so I turned to plaiting my hair to try and avoid the inevitable frizz it turns into when it gets wet. However, I couldn't find two matching hair bands and so resorted to using gold ribbon instead - which I actually really liked (I felt quite Lolita-esque) and think I might do more often.
Anyway, we got up ridiculously early and so managed to get to Brighton in time for breakfast. There's something so nice about arriving somewhere whilst the shops are still closed; you feel as if you can get a headstart and explore at leisure without worrying that you're missing something. We chose a cute little café and I have since been trying to recreate the perfection that was the breakfast I had there (but with little success). We then spent an age looking through all of the gorgeous little shops, especially Snooper's Attic, which is literally my idea of heaven.

Snooper's Attic is like the debenhams of antiques and vintage; at two storeys high, it is a maze of separate stalls selling the biggest variety of odds and ends that I'm sure anyone will ever come across in one place. Glass cabinets house figurines and oddities like the stuffed ducklings pictured above, embellished china spills out onto tables and chairs, clothes hang from the ceiling and books line the walls. It is every vintage-lover's dream, and you are guaranteed to find a whole host of new treasure each time you visit (even if you visit twice in one day). Everything is haphazardly but perfectly placed, and it has that wonderful sense of organised chaos that I just feel so comfortable in.

I found these shoes in a corner of Snooper's Attic and completely and utterly fell in love...it was as if someone had handmade my dream shoe and placed it there for me to stumble across. They were quite cheap too, but a size 13, making them way too small. TOO SMALL. I have the tiniest feet in the world, how can a pair of shoes be too small?! I spent a long time holding them and willing my feet to shrink but at long last accepted that it was a little unnecessary to buy shoes I couldn't even wear. So basically, they're still there guys. I hope they go to a good home.

The heavens then decided to open, so we mimicked the rest of the population and scurried like ants into a nearby café for lunch and to shelter from the sudden onslaught of torrential rain. I was easily pleased with the fact that the iced tea I bought matched my outfit. We then carried on exploring the Laines, and I found one of my favourite antique malls that is almost hidden along and inbetween a row of residential houses. Like Snooper's Attic, it was piled high with a huge amount of quirky pieces that I wished I had enough car boot space to have taken home with me. I think in a sense it was lucky that I travelled by car, as it prevented me from buying all of the china teacups and saucers they had...I have a secret obsession with vintage china and am slowly building up my collection.

We also found a cute little street market kind of thing and I spent too long taking pictures of a cat asleep on one of the chairs hanging up on the wall.
By this time, the sun had decided to come out (I have officially given up trying to understand English weather) and so we headed down to the seafront, to browse through all the cute touristy shops and walk along the pier. Brighton pier is one of the highlights of the coastline, and is both busy and vibrant yet relaxing at the same time. It would be a lovely place to sit and read if you lived nearby.

I found a little ice cream kiosk that matched my outfit, and felt like the queen of colour co-ordination for a few brief minutes. It was great.

There are free deckchairs left out for you to use on the pier, so we sat overlooking the sea for a while and lapped up the last of the afternoon sun whilst eating the compulsory fudge that you just have to buy when you're in Brighton. It's from a very particular shop and the whole place smells like fudge when you go in...the best flavours are chocolate orange and mint chocolate, and I of course ate way too much. Let's just pretend the orange one is one of your five a day.

 I hope you all have a fantastic week...don't forget to pop down to the Motel event and come and say hi if you see me there! I'll probably be wearing something weird.
Much love,