Deeply Saddened

Inspirational Temple Trip

Sorry for the lack of posts this month, things have been really busy and I've been working on getting some other projects, visiting home and life just gets in the way sometimes but what can you do...! I wanted to share my trip to beautiful Temple and Monastery, Samye Lings as it was so inspirational both aesthetically and personally. The colours, shrines, temple, gardens and the architecture were so beautiful. I want to create shoot influenced from everything I came across when I visited last month, it's truly an amazing gem tucked away in the countryside in Dumfries and Galloway. 

I would recommend anyone to visit and you'll want to go back. Having never been to Tibet or Asia it is so wonderful to experience the spirit of the that part of the world. The use of colour, design, architecture, art, sculpture was a visual feast it will stay with me and continue to inspire my future creative endeavors. I'm so happy to had the pleasure to visit, if you have the time take a trip there! Have a great week and don't forget to visit The Chic Guide on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, Tumblr and like, share and follow.

The cafe was so beautiful, so inspired by the beautiful colours, patterns and space

One of the many utterly beautiful statutes, shown in the brightly against the gray sky

The doors to the temple

From every angle it's mesmerising

One of the entrances...

The cafe

Pretty handmade crafts from Tibet, there were so many wonderful crafts and pieces

Offering the tree a helping hand

The herb garden was so lovely

The outside of the temple was awe inspiring

LouLou's Vintage Fair

Pretty polkadot dress

Sunday morning are always my lazy sleep in days but I woke early and decided popped into LouLou's Vintage Fair to check out the event as I'd not been before and see what it was like. Also I genuienly love any excuse to go look at vintage trinkets, clothes and anything of that nature! You never know what treasures await at vintage events and fairs so I like to try and go along when I can. I went early before the crowds began to come in as I want first glance at everything there and there was lots of goodies! The entry fee of £2 was extremely reasonable as I've been to other vintage fairs and paid more but that's not to say that they weren't worth but I just don't like paying anything above £4 if there are just clothing stalls personally so it was good that it was so unexpensive to get in!

The format for LouLou's Vintage Fair was very similar to Judy's Vintage Fair if you have ever been to one of their events. Tea, coffee, cakes were served while the dj played vintage tunes. There was also a vintage hair stylist and jewellery maker of VivaLaLux so if you fancied getting pin-curled, some victory rolls, betty bangs or any vintage style you could simply popped over, relax and get a new vintage style do! I loved that there was a vintage hair stylist and it would be great for folk attending if you could get your make-up done too as I know lots struggle with winged liner and vintage make-up but I didn't see anyone there but maybe there was later in the say?

Adorable Retro inspired Jewellery

To be honest though, I was more interested in the clothes, accessories and homewares to stop for tea and cake but maybe I will next time!  I was looking for some interesting pieces to inspire me and items for my Spring/Summer wardrobe. I have been lusting over accessories on instagram and esty lately so I wanted to find some cute brooches, pins and hair flowers as they can really transform any look into something extra special.  To my delight while I was walking around the fair I came across VivaLaLux brand picture above have a beautiful range of hand crafted retro inspired jellewery and hair flowers. All the sparkles and vivid colours caught my eye so I was super excited to browse through the many pretty items they had on display. After much browsing I came back and decided to treat myself to a hair flower and cherry brooch, it's so pretty and the lily hair flower also has cherries and a fan attached which I can wait to wear out very soon.

Pretty Pastel Shades

I'm always on the hunt for a new pretty dress and I was super excited to see some of my favourite vintage reproduction brands such as Hell Bunny, Lindy Bop and Collectif Clothing and Banned Clothing, (I'm sure there were more I just can't remember all of them!) which being sold as while I love vintage but I've found recently it's proving  difficult to find vintage dresses or skirts in smaller sizes so vintage reproduction or retro inspired collections are great for modern fit but with vintage cut and design. I fell in love with these pretty pastel dresses from the polka dots to the florals I would happily have taken on of each so I had to snap them to share with you.

They're as pretty in the flesh as they are pictured but alas I wasn't buying this time but I think I will have to get my hands on at least one of these dresses for summer...I just won't tell my other half! I love the mint green polka dot dress from Hell Bunny, it looks like the perfect day dress for casual summer outings or I'd wear it to work with a cardigan and some ballet flats. I adore the baby blue dress from Lindy Bop also, it's slightly more dressey and figure hugging for some summer cocktails!  

There were lots of other great vintage sellers some were very reasonable. It was great there was a nice mix of era's as I'm fond of 40's, 50's & early 60's clothes not so much on the whole 80's and 90's fascination at the moment, I guess if you remember the clothes and that era it's never as fun? Well not that I really remember the 80's as that was before my time but the 90's yes and I'm not a fan as I prefer more classic girly vintage and less grunge these days...however I still think Kurt Cobain is hot! There was something for most tastes at LouLou's Vintage for me there could have been a couple more sellers as the space was so big it looked a bit empty in parts but on the whole I would say it's well worth a visit and it's so positive to support local crafts people and vintage sellers so if there's a LouLou's Vintage Fair near you go and bring some friends, have tea, cake, get some victory rolls and pick up a treat! Here's some more photo's from Sunday. If you have an event or know of fun vintage days out let me! Don't forget to visit The Chic Guide on Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr, Pinterest, Twitter, Bloglovin and Google+ and follow for updates! ♡

Rocking reproduction dresses

Cute vintage skirts, leather and sparkles

Vintage and custome jewellery statement pieces

Lots of great vintage menswear

Lots of lovely vintage pieces I spotted

♡ ♡ ♡ Happy Valentines Day my darlings ♡ ♡ ♡

Have a wonderful Valentines my darlings!
Share the love today and everyday.
Treat your nearest and dearest all year round 
by showing how much they mean to you
♡♡♡

♡♡ Valentines Essentials! ♡♡

It's that time of year again, Valentines! I don't mind the holiday minus all the cheesy Hallmark'ness of the day it be very sweet to celebrate the day with the people you love and that doesn't have to constitute being in a couple! So with that mind I have put together of Valentines day themed essentials to create the perfect pinup inspired look and boy are you in for a treat with clothes, make-up, accessories, hairstyling and shoe ideas and inspiration to harness your inner pin-up whether you're going on a date, drinks with girlfriends or just looking for some inspiration for the weekend if Valentines is not your thing, keep reading...! 

I couldn't write about Valentines essentials without mentioning Vivien of Holloway. They produce some of the most beautiful vintage inspired dresses around; I'm a massive fan of the UK based brand. Browsing their website never fails to make me droll over the stunning vintage inspired clothes. I especially love this  heart print halter-neck full skirted dress, it's just adorable. Fun, flirty, 1950's inspired dress is a classic retro style piece to add to your wardrobe. (right, modeled by the lovely Ana Fur Laxis). I love this heart print, its just darling. This is the perfect dress for dancing the night away, you'll want to twirl around all night with such a full circle skirt on so it's a definite must for a date of drinks and dancing with friends or that special someone! Vivien of Holloway dresses can be customised and they also sell bolero to match their dresses to keep you snug. Vivien of Holloway dresses are best worn with a petticoat underneath which will enhance the width of the circle skirt and give a more authentic vintage feel. Thankfully you can purchase some of the best petticoats on sale also made by Vivien of Holloway which are available from their website and come in an array of colours for you to choose from; you'll be spoilt for choice!

Pinup Girl Clothing's Monica had to feature in the Valentines essentials- this dress is legendary! It's one of the most popular designs they've produced and for good reason, it makes every women's figure look divine! Modeled by one of my favourite contemporary pin-ups, Doris Mayday; this dress is a sophisticated, curve hugging, sassy pin-up style (a work of genius some would argue!) I have yet to see any women wear try on this dress with looking amazing, just look at Doris Mayday in this dress, wow! I love this dress in this vivid tomato red, its so bold and feminine ideal for Valentines or any special evening. I would normally suggest accessories to go with a dress but I think the dress speaks for itself so personally I just keep them to a minimum. The shape is much more generous to of all shapes and sizes, giving you the perfect pinup hourglass figure through it's structured design. Off the shoulders and with a sweetheart neckline, busty or not this dress will make you feel like a glamour-puss! Perfect for a dinner date or cocktails, all eyes will be on you! A dress such as this requires some extra special heels, the higher the better but make sure you can walk in them! There is nothing more unattractive then stumbling all evening in shoes you can't walk in!

For footwear when I was thinking of shoes to feature on my Valentines Essentials list I instantly thought of BAIT Footwear (But Another Innocent Tale), I'm in love with their shoeline. If you haven't already heard of this amazing brand then familiarise yourself because they're awesome! There vegan friendly designs are not only super cute but support animal welfare and what could be more loving so I had to feature theirs shoes! The brand is incredibly popular at the moment with bloggers, shoes lovers and retro lovers alike and its easy to see why.  Their shoes are perfect for every occasion. The choice of shoes, heels heights, colours, styles and eras are really something. I'm in love with these little red platforms with a super sweet bow on the front and their peep toe which are my favourite. This heel height is perfect and it's a block heel as well which are much easier to walk in which is always an added bonus. I think these heels would look wonderful either dressed up or down. They love the most lovely red and white low heels which you can find on their website which would look perfect with the Vivien of Holloway dress featured above.

I love these little pinup brooches from Rock'a'frilly, perfect for a pinup themed Valentines pinup inspired look or for anytime! I love accessories they had a finishing touch to any look. While I don't like very accessorising a statement piece can elevate a simple black dress or a cardigan. Give it a try, there are loads of amazing companies producing gorgeous accessories, I love Erstwilder,  Ladybird Likes, Dollydagger and loads more.This pinup collection is  ideal for add some retro glamour to any look. If a red dress is not your thing then try a little black number put with a pinup on it! I think these would look great on a coat or leather jacket for the perfect rockabilly look.  I love to collect the whole series if I could but I think that's maybe being too greedy!

Another on my Valentines essentials is yet again another beauty from Pinup Girl clothing. There stock just keeps getting better and better on their website. I was reluctant to feature the same company twice but with a bag this cute I just had too! I adore this wicker retro inspired handbag; it comes with tiki fruits included hanging on the outside of the bag, whats not to love?! It's the perfect accompaniment to any pinup inspired look for Valentines or any occasion.  I adore the red version, it's so vibrant and fun. You can find this purse in other colours but this shade is by far the best in my opinion! It's like holiday in a bag, so tropical! This bag is ideal for adding a bit of much needed sunshine to these grey days! You could go for a whole tiki themed pinup look for Valentines to match this beauty. You can find marvelous hair flowers online at relatively inexpensive price to match this beauty online and some of my very favourites are NicCoCo Creations, Rock Rockabilly, Dollydagger, Pip Boutique, and lots more that I've forgotten to mention. You don't need to go tiki themed this bag would look equally fabulous with a cocktails dress or any retro inspired look, just have fun with creating your look!

Finally I wanted to feature a pretty fascinator perfect for Valentines and I stumbled upon the most apt one I could ever possibly found on the Dollydagger website, it literally says true love!! I to wear fascinators when I'm going extra glam it just adds that extra touch of old school glamour to your look which is always a good thing. Personally I think you can never be too dressed up anyway so you don't really need an occasion just the confidence to wear whatever you feel like! Aside from that I have to say that this fascinator is utterly perfect for Valentines, and how doesn't love an excuse for a nice hat if nothing else!!!  If you're looking for something extra special for an evening of romance then you've got to go for this fascinator! I love the ribbon text and the red heart contrasted against the black netting, its funky yet sophisticated. Perfect for a candlelight dinner or even a proposal?! Whatever you plan to do or even if your plan is to ignore the day, have a good one. 

Enjoy the weekend!

Much Love,

The Chic Guide

xxx

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