TOPSHOP EAGLE BELT

I've been trying (ridiculously hard, even) to not buy anything this month. However I can't help but check out my familiar web haunts to see what new things have come in. TOPSHOP in particular has been making it really difficult for me to stick by my new "no spending" mantra, as they've got tons of new and fabulous spring items (I've been eyeing those knitted/fringe cardigans for days now).

However when I came across this amazing belt I just couldn't help my self. This belt is just so my style. I love the vintage/rock and roll feel it has, and although I feel like I could have found something similar (and cheaper to boot) in a vintage shop, I just don't care.

Chocolate Leather Eagle Buckle, £32.00 from TOPSHOP

If you want one too then I'd probably hurry on over to the website as I have a feeling this won't be in stock for too long.

FRIVOLOUS PURCHASES

Just when I think I have my spending habits under control I go and do something silly—like buying 6-inch heels (hint #1) when it's been snowing in Stockholm for three days straight. No, I did not buy the Dany platforms, or the Litas either. This was a spur of the moment, not-thinking-of-the-repercussions-type of purchase.

Being that it was Black Friday yesterday, I guess the American in me just couldn't pass up a deal. So when I saw these particular ankle boots (hint #2) on sale I just couldn't say no. And you know what? I'm not sorry.

I have been in love with these "it" boots since I first saw them on the runway at Yves Saint Laurent back in 2008 (hint #3). Will I be able to walk in these? I don't even care. After all, according to the well-heeled Anna Dello Russo, 'tis the season to focus on your shoes, be they "sparkly, shiny, eccentric, metallic, decorative, precious, brocade, extravagant, colorful, magnificent, enchanting."

You get the picture.

Speaking of pictures, I'm going to hold-off on posting any until they arrive. I'm sure those of you that are a slave to fashion like myself already know which boots these are. Until then...

Happy shopping!

LANVIN LOVES H&M: THE SCORE

Yup, time to be a good little blogger and post my Lanvin <3 H&M collection haul. As I mentioned before, I wasn't totally blown away by this collection. Last year's Jimmy Choo collab had me drawing up game plans on how exactly I was going to score every single piece, so I suppose I was a little disappointed when all the Lanvin images were finally released and I didn't really swoon over any of the pieces—particularly the accessories.

However, one item that I really did love were the sunglasses. Knowing full well most other bloggers had these on their shopping lists, the low price-point and because I didn't bother going down to H&M the morning of the release (or the day after), I sort of gave up hope on scoring a pair.

Well today I had some time to kill in the morning, so I managed to talk my boyfriend into driving me to a sort-of out-of-the-way H&M location that had stocked the collection (Kista is the name of the town, which is a suburb of Stockholm). We ended up getting there just as the doors were opened, and I casually looked around to see if there was anything left.

As I made my way to the back of the store I spotted a small stand with a few of the dresses remaining, and some boxes near the floor.

Not even thinking there were any sunglasses left, I opened one of the boxes to see what was in it. Lo and behold, there they were!

The last pair in possibly all of Sweden, and they were mine! Haha! I didn't even have to wait in line for them, or pay a gazillion dollars for them on eBay! Success! Can you tell I'm excited?

Anyway, there are still items to be had out there. I noticed this morning H&M had restocked their website with quite a few pieces. I was almost tempted to get that yellow one-shouldered dress, but I decided to save my money on a piece from another collaboration that I've had my eye on for a month or so (will post picts soon). Either way, if you were one of the unlucky ones don't give up hope.

Happy shopping!

LOOK OUT WINTER (CAUSE HERE I COME)

My new Timberland Mukluk boots were delivered today, and just in time if you ask me. The temperature here in Stockholm is starting to head south on the thermostat real fast (below freezing). Some Swedish weather forecasters are predicting this winter to be the coldest winter in 100 years (yikes)!

And while they're not the most glamorous of boots, I am super excited to wear them. I have a feeling these will end up being the best purchase I make all winter (which in Sweden, lasts a very long time).

If you live in Sweden and have been trying desperately to nab yourself a pair of these (they're practically sold out everywhere) you can still find some online at Zoo Village, which is where I ordered mine from. They also carry the boots in the colors white and "wheat."

Happy shopping!

WORTH THE WAIT

Finally they arrived! After weeks of anticipation and an unhappy moment at the post office where I learned I would have to pay over $130 USD due to Swedish tax regulations, I picked up my new shoes today!

And here they are! The Jeffrey Campbell Zipper Boot in brown/black. If only blogs were equipped with smell-o-vision, then you would be able to experience the amazing leather scent these babies have given my small apartment since opening the box.

Out of the box and ready to be tried on!

And oh, something else that's new in this picture—the cardigan from the H&M Arizona Dream editorial arrived as well. Isn't it fantastic?

I'm actually a pretty good photographer, but you wouldn't know it by the horrible lighting and sub-par iPhone camera. The detailing is the best part of these boots. I absolutely love them. 

ANTICIPATION

Friday was payday here in Sweden—and well, you can guess what I did. Shopping! Among my many purchases are a pair of fantastic shoes I ordered from Need Supply Co. that I cannot wait to show you. I will only give you one hint.

Image via Cameron Jennings Design

Arizona Dream

Just browsed the H&M website and came across the cardigan worn by Anja Rubik for the Arizona Dream editorial featured in the fall issue of H&M Magazine. It probably won't be on there long, so if you've been lusting after this item like I have, then hurry on over to the website.

Off The Chain

Alexander Wang

Kori Off the Chain Booties

And now I am broke.

 Available at Mytheresa.com

Speaking of Celine inspired...

I thought I would finally get around to sharing some of my purchases from my holiday in California. I bought these Joe's Jeans platform sandals at Nordstrom for a little over $200 (including tax)—a fraction of what the Celine platforms cost.

Here I am modeling them with one of the other items I picked up on my vacation—Chanel's much coveted nail polish in Nouvelle Vague.

You can still find them online at Nordstrom and at Shopbop. Happy shopping!

Sheep and (not) Cheap!

The sheepskin jacket. Priority number one on every fashionista's fall must-have list.

How do I love thee? Let me count the the ways ... in which I cannot afford you.

For me, Topshop gets it right again and again, and this is no exception. I absolutely love this jacket! Unfortunately at 325 GBP (over 500 USD) it is a bit out of my price range at the moment. Not only that, but I am somewhat hesitant to every pay that much for something from Topshop (nothing but love for you Topshop, but c'mon).

Lucky for me, there is an affordable alternative—also from Topshop.

At 58 GBP (under 100 bucks!) this jacket is a steal. Good thing I ordered it last week because it's already out of stock. Don't fret, Topshop frequently restocks their merchandise online, so keep check the website daily.

MAC Haul + an unexpected surprise

By the looks of my last post you would have thought that I had sworn off make-up purchases until my trip to California next week. Well, I a recent influx of money into my bank account has had me itching to go shopping, and since I'm not patient enough to wait a full week until my trip I figured I'd hit up the local MAC counter to see what goodies I could bring home.

Nothing spectacular, although I did really like their latest collection To The Beach, which was basically sold-out by the time I came to check it out. I ended up purchasing five items—three of which are brushes, and two are makeup products. The first is a mineralize skin finish that I let myself get talked into buying, so I will skip that. Now, on to the last remaining purchase. Drum roll please...

Studio Moisture Tint! I've been on the tinted moisturizer bandwagon for about six months now and so far I've had no complaints. As I've gotten older my skin has "mellowed out," if you will, and I've found that I haven't needed a full-on foundation for quite some time.

Previous to this purchase I had been using Smashbox's Sheer Focus Tinted Moisturizer (shade: light) with mixed feelings. Sure it evened out my skin-tone, but I feel like it didn't do much else. I also felt that it disappeared from my face quicker than I would like, even after setting with MAC Blot Powder.

After a lot of googling I noticed several brands kept popping up—Laura Mercier, Shiseido, Korres and Stila seem to sell the most popular tinted moisturizers at the moment, but on a whim I thought I would check to see what MAC had to offer.

Enter Studio Moisture Tint

I was a bit surprised to see what a great rating the Studio Moisture Tint (SMT from here on out) received on makeupalley.com. While MAC is one of, if not the best brands in make-up it hasn't exactly wowed many people (myself included) with their skincare line—which is what SMT is classified under on the MAC website.

After I read many of the reviews on Makeup Alley I figured I would pop on over to MAC to have a look myself, and I wasn't disappointed. The woman who helped me at MAC determined the shade that suited me best was "medium dark." After applying the SMT to my the area around my jawline I immediately noticed how much better the coverage was compared to the Smashbox TM that I had been using over the last six months. Not only was the coverage better, but the color suited me perfectly.

Sold!

Update: August 10th


I love, LOVE, love this tinted moisturizer. It has been my go-to product just about every day since I bought it in June. Although I would still like to experiment with a couple other brands I believe know this is will be a repurchase. Definitely two enthusiastic thumbs up!

Shopping Sunday

OK, so I know I said I wouldn't be spending much money this month on clothes but today I just couldn't resist.

First, a new pair of ballerina flats. I got these from a great store on Götgatan called Belle. They have amazing shoes, and at really low prices.

Next I got two basic tops from Gina Tricot. The one on the left is just your basic white tank—similar to the Acne Level tee, but for a lot less money. The one on the right is another Miu Miu S/S10 inspired print, and one that I had to add to my Miu Miu impostor collection (I already own the infamous Zara cat print dress along with the pink and black sparrow print tank and matching socks, also from Gina Tricot).

Cheapo Haul

I'm trying to save some money this month because I need to buy a plane ticket home (to Los Angeles) for the end of June, this presents quite the predicament for me. In Sweden we get paid once a month, and at the end of each month I basically have a list of things I want to buy (95% of the time this list consists of fashion or beauty related items) when my paycheck is deposited. Unfortunately I'm going to have to hold back on the purchases this month and make due with what I've already got.

However I managed to pick up a couple things on the cheap today.

I've needed new sandals since last February, when I destroyed the only pair I owned (nice looking gladiators I bought from H&M last season) while on vacation in Thailand. I love gladiator sandals but I've been craving ones that aren't so generic looking, maybe with some studs or chains—whatever.

I saw these great sandals in the window walking by Din Sko and I immediately had to have them. They were the last pair in my size and since they only cost 349 kr. I knew spending a little bit of money on fashion this month would be doable. I love the aztec/southwest vibe that they've got going on, which fits great with this season's tribal trend.

The other purchase I made was a multi-colored long necklace from H&M. I want to update my jewelry collection this year with more turquoise (again, the southwest/tribal trend) and thought this would be a cute piece. Also, it's going to look great with a tie-dyed orange tunic I bought from Sisters a couple weeks ago ... and also with the new tan that I've got going on. There's something about turquoise jewelry and tanned skin that looks absolutely amazing. H&M had quite a few turquoise accessories and I really had to force myself not to buy more. The only thing that stopped me was knowing I'd be back in Southern California in a month; where I can buy the real-deal turquoise that is abundantly available in the southwestern part of the United States.

Until then, I'll just have to save for that plane ticket!

XO,

Andie

Year of the Moschino belt

And now it's mine!

I'm fairly certain I've scavenged to hell and back on the internet for this baby. The months of searching (and weeping) have finally paid off as I received it in the mail today. 

I got mine from a great site called Gems Collectable Clothing. I randomly came across their store doing one of my many Google searches for the belt and they just happened to have one in stock. Immediately I sent them an email inquiring about the size and condition of the belt. Interestingly enough they emailed me back telling me their website was still under construction and that they were pleasantly surprised at all the hits they were getting, as they hadn't begun advertising yet. 

In case you have been living under the proverbial fashion rock, the Moschino logo has come back in a major way over the last six months. Just doing a simple search on Google will generate dozens upon dozens of blogs dedicated to this fashion phenomenon. 

I'm not really sure what the late Franco Moschino would have to say about the trend, although it is interesting to note Moschino himself was one of fashion's biggest critics—once stating that being a fashion designer was "a superficial, stupid job."

Refinery29 has done a great piece on the trend, incase you're interested in reading more.