LFF REVIEWS: FLORENCE & FRED SWIMWEAR

One summer essential I didn’t mention in my holiday style diary was swimwear. Prior to my trip, Florence & Fred kindly offered me a bikini to review from their SS13 collection. I am feeling sportswear inspired swimwear this season, so I picked this black mesh-insert bikini.  What impressed me about this bikini was that the bralet top can be ordered according to  cup size; I have seen a  similar style to this in a leading high street store this season that only comes in dress sizes and the fit was really bad. In contrast, the F&F bikini was super comfortable and a perfect fit. I appreciated that the bikini was true to size- nothing puts me in a worse mood swimwear shopping than having to go up a size in a swimwear that is akin to dental floss!

 Style-wise, the subtle mesh panels give a nod to this season's sport luxe trend without fashion overkill; this is a bikini that you will wear for seasons to come. I've styled the two piece with a sporty and urban Alexander Wang feel below, but you can wear black swimwear with pretty much any trend.

My only criticism? Well whilst I like the on-trend peekaboo detail in between the cups of the bralet, it didn't make for easy sun cream application! Hence why I ended up with some pretty comedic sunburn after day 1 spent lounging by the pool. So cream up carefully ladies! But overall I'm extremely impressed with quality and will be heading back to F&F for future swimwear purchases. 

1. Bralet bikini top, F&F, £8.
2. Mesh insert bikini briefs, F&f, £5. 
3. Janet drawstring bag, Vince Camuto, £115. 
4. Sporty gladiators, Next, £35. 
5. Saint Laurent Bold 1 Square sunglasses, Net-a-porter.com, £189. 
6. Hot makeup Golden Sun nail polish, Nelly.com, £6.95.  
6. Bumble & Bumble surf spray, Urban Retreat Beautique, £14.40. 

LFF EDITS: THE SS13 SALES

With the SS13 sales well under way and there are plenty of bargains to be had both on line and in store. As you may have gauged from this week's holiday style diary, I am really loving bold pops of colour right now so this sale edit is dedicated to all things optimistically-hued. Some of these items are quite pricey still (Sophie Hulme's beautiful buckle tote for example) but they are all investment pieces that I think will work for several summers to come. By the way, the Topshop sale started after I put this post together, so be sure to check out their offering too. Happy shopping! 

1. Check silk cotton trousers, Jaeger, was £ 99, now £49.
2. Sophie Hulme buckle tote, Matchesfashion.com, was £570 now £399.
3. Marc Jacobs colour block loafers, Net-a-porter.com, was £350 now £210.
4. Filippa K halter bikini top, Whistles,was £50 now £30.
5. Bliss yellow flatform sandals, StylistPick, was £32 now £15. 
6. Whistles animal jacquard skirt, Atterley Road, was £125 now £65.
7. Balenciaga round-frame sunglasses, The Outnet, was £235.94 now £94.38.

LFF'S HOLIDAY STYLE DIARY

I didn't blog last week because I was on holiday in sunny Mijas in Spain. Being a fashion addict, I enjoy the process of shopping for and packing my wardrobe just as a much as the holiday experience itself. So I thought I'd share my style diary on here with my summer essentials.

My standard every day look for holidays involves shorts and a lightweight cotton shirt. I pretty much wore the below outfit all holiday (bit gross- sorry to my travel bud Neena)! If you're fair-skinned like myself, a light shirt is essential to avoid sun damage. I wore mine by the pool over my bikini too. This leopard print number is past-season Zara; they have a great selection for SS13 too. My denim shorts are a recent New Look purchase. I like the slouchy boyfriend shape; they feel more relaxed than skin tight hotpants.

I was craving colour when I was shopping for my holiday wardrobe, so I picked up this fluoro neoprene bag from & Other Stories. It also happened to work perfectly with my past-season hothouse bloom print Cos dress.

Jewelled costume earrings are my suitcase essential for holidaying abroad. They can dress up just about every outfit for cocktail hour. The pair I'm wearing here were £4 in the H&M sale; ASOS also stock an amazing and affordable range.

Photo creds: Neena Bhamber. 

Unfortunately a gust of wind in the above picture makes me appear a little pregnant. To clarify, I am not with child! Wardrobe malfunction aside, this picture is to illustrate how crisp broderie Anglaise can make just about anyone appear tanned on holiday. My complexion is extremely fair, but even I look vaguely tanned in white cotton. My ripped 'Elgin' jeans are a recent ASOS purchase inspired by Alex from The Frugality. They are one of my favourite buys in a while; extremely soft, comfortable, on-trend and available in a longer leg length. Even better they are reduced to £24.50 right now- total bargain!

I also wore them with my new Clarks sandals- the snakeskin/ distressed denim combination is always a winner in my books. Totally love the sandals too- so comfy and stylish. Clarks are at the top of their game this season. 

A note on packing: when it comes to the process of packing my suitcase I'm extremely particular. Blame it on my former life as a Harvey Nichols sales assistant, but I like to fold tissue inside delicate clothes to stop them from creasing. It really does work! I took my Mum's advice and carried my straw hat in my hand luggage to, to prevent it from getting crushed. 

One last tip- don't waste your money and buy expensive clothes for your holidays abroad. Suncream, sand and seawater can all ruin clothes so stock up on inexpensive and fun pieces from the high street that you don't mind trashing. Here's a mini edit of some other holiday buys that LFF loves:

1. Hedley yellow sandals, ASOS, £45. 2. Chambray shirt, Topshop, £29.3. Cream broderie frill swimsuit, Topshop, £36. 4.Love Rocks fluoro rhinestone earrings, ASOS, £30. 5.Blue boyfriend shorts, New Look, £14.99.

LFF'S COLOUR TRANSFORMATION WITH HEADMASTERS

When I turned 25 in April, I made a resolution to be bolder with my sartorial choices. Shorter hemlines, higher heels; you only live once and I want my style to reflect that! One style change I have always wanted to make (but never felt brave enough to commit to) was to colour my dark brunette hair lighter. I decided I was ready to take the plunge and contacted the team at Headmasters to see if they could assist with my transformation. They kindly obliged, and last week I found myself at their Mayfair address in the extremely talented hands of Colour Director Siobhan Jones. Continue reading after the jump to see how my new look was achieved...