SS20 || BEST AFFORDABLE DRESSES YOU NEED THIS SPRING - SUMMER

It's so easy to decide on an outfit based on what the weather is like, but have you ever thought of a gorgeous outfit and then got annoyed when you couldn't find anything remotely similar in your wardrobe? I'm definitely one of those girls and try to really control my spending and up-cycle what I already own. In this post, I wanted to share with you my top picks of high-street dresses that are mainly under £35 (I tried to find the best and most affordable dresses across 8 different online retailers).

One of my favourite stores to shop for holiday/Summer outfits has to be River Island as they never fail to bring out gorgeous prints which I always keep in my Summer wardrobe ready for my next holiday. I particularly love this White Polka Dot Dress as you can wear it anywhere in the world either during the day or night and look super fabulous! For £36 I think it's a great bargain and that everyone should own a dress like this in their wardrobe.

I think that this White Leaf Print Beach Dress (also from River Island) is super cute and would be very flattering for all body shapes. The cut-out detail and the belt are nice additions to this dress, and for only £25 I think it's a great steal! It also comes in khaki.

I love H&M all year round, but I feel like they always up their game around Summertime. Neon has been a huge hit for the past couple of years, especially in the Summer, so it's not a surprise to see bright and colourful dresses making an appearance on the H&M website. This Smocked Mesh Dress is only £9.99 and is a part of a collaboration with the movie 'To All the Boys I've Loved Before Part 2'.

Another great bargain from H&M is this beautiful Polka Dot Lyocell Dress for only £19.99! This would make a great wedding guest or baby shower outfit.

Now, this dress is absolutely stunning. It's a gorgeous colour and a trendy print and style - what else could we ask for?! This Warehouse Satin Jacquard Midi Tea Dress is in the sale for only £25 and would make a great summer outfit.

Missguided is one of my go-to online stores for Summer clothing, and let me tell you when I say I found some amazing gems that I am not lying! For instance, this beautiful little White Satin Crochet Dress is currently in the sale for £17.60! It's everything you could ask for in a summer dress, especially for exciting cocktails with the girls once it's safe to go out!

I love this dress so much! It's super cute and flattering, and only £28! This Pink Floral Midi Dress is perfect to wear on a cold-ish Summer night and would look great paired up with little sandals.

So, these are my top dresses for this Summer and I really hope that we will all get a chance to have a proper Summer this year. This is a very difficult time that we are going through right now and I'm sending everyone my love and lots of positive thoughts.

*This post does not include affiliate links and is not sponsored. The images used for this post are not mine and have been saved from the retailers' websites.

Lots of love,

Maya xo

FASHION || HOW TO STYLE A LACE BODYSUIT FT FEMMELUXE - AD

* This post contains gifted items. 

As some of you already know, I’m working with Femme Luxe on a gifted basis which means that I receive some items from them for free in exchange for a blog & Instagram post.

In my most recent order, I have picked this gorgeous Black Lace Long Sleeve Plunge Bodysuit and I couldn’t wait to wear it. I’ve paired it up with a white Primark ribbed high neck t-shirt, Primark mom jeans and Gucci belt. I’m not brave enough to wear this out on its own and I love the layered look in Winter.

The quality of this bodysuit is good, it also fits really well. If you wanted to wear it on its own then I would suggest getting nipple covers or wearing a bra underneath. I did find that it was slightly too small for me in the cup area so I'd suggest to size up if you have bigger boobs. It is also super high cut so is very flattering around the hip & waist area!

This bodysuit only comes in black, however Femme Luxe have a variety of gorgeous lace bodysuits in different styles and colours which you can find here.

*This bodysuit was gifted but the post is not sponsored and all opinions are my own.

Lots of love,

Maya xo

BLOGMAS 2019 || GIFT GUIDE FOR MEN

Every year I struggle with finding what to get for my partner, my dad and my brother for Christmas (and birthdays). I always want it to be a thoughtful yet practical present that they will like, and nothing rubbish they will open and force a smile at.

This year I have put together a modern gift guide for the men in your life based on their interests and different budgets. I have decided to go for 5 different interests: gamer, sports fan, animal lover, musician and outgoer. I know that I can pick at least one item from every list for my boyfriend, dad AND brother and they are all different ages starting from 11. If I can find something for my loved ones, then I'm sure you can too!


1. GIFTS FOR A GAMER:

- The newest Xbox/PlayStation console
- Nintendo Switch
- Personalised controller - Scuf or ControllerModz
- T-shirt of their favourite character from a game


2. GIFTS FOR A MUSIC LOVER:

- Favourite band t-shirt
- An instrument
- Tickets to see their favourite singer/band
- A microphone and audio set


3. GIFTS FOR A SPORTS FAN:

- Men's tracksuit set
- Trainers
- Tickets to see their favourite sports club
- Favourite sports club t-shirt


4. GIFTS FOR ANIMAL LOVERS:

- An online animal adoption (to help save endangered species)
- Donating money to an animal shelter in their name
- Possibly adopt a pet from a shelter (if they can really look after it)
- A onesie representing their favourite animal


5. GIFTS FOR OUTGOERS:

- Cinema gift card
- Restaurant gift card
- A weekend away
- An escape room experience

Is there anything else you'd add to this list? I hope it helps with finding the best gift for the men in your life!

*This post is sponsored but all opinions are honest and my own.

Lots of love,

Maya xo

AW19 | FEMME LUXE CLOTHING REVIEW

How irritating is it when you’re trying to find the perfect outfit for a special occasion and feel like you’ll never find what you’re looking for?! I know exactly how it feels, hence why I’m so open to trying out different brands and online retailers to test out their quality of clothing (free clothes to test out are always great).

I was recently contacted by FemmeLuxe to become their ambassador and try out their clothing range. I have picked out 4 different items of clothing which I’m going to review and style for you in this post.

If you haven’t heard of Femme Luxe before it is an online clothing brand which focuses on influencer inspired fashion based in Manchester. The brand states that ’Femme Luxe is a bold, forward thinking, influencer inspired fashion brand based in the cutting-edge city of Manchester. We aim to deliver the most on trend pieces that will really make you stand out, no matter what the occasion. With everything from off-duty looks to a glam girl’s night out dress, cute co-ords and bangin’ blazer dresses, to luxe loungewear and stand out wardrobe staples, our trend led #luxegal’s know how to style any piece.’

Outfit Number 1:

I loved the look of this Pink Oversized Shirt Dress, I thought it was so classy yet stylish and the colour is perfect for all Mean Girls fans. Everyone should own a shirt dress in their wardrobe as it's an effortless staple outfit for any occasion. Drinks with workmates? Date night? Christening? There's a shirt dress for all occasions and I believe that this one is one of them. I picked the powder pink dress as I thought it would compliment my skin tone well (it is a little bit too light for me unless I fake tan). The material is very lightweight, so you won't get hot in the summer, but do make sure that you wear nude underwear with it as you don't want anything showing through. As I am only 5ft3 I thought the length of the dress was perfect for me, however, I would recommend sizing up for more length or wearing this as a shirt with a pair of faux leather leggings/trousers.

Outfit Number 2:

This outfit is so adorable that it'll even make an 'Insta-Baddie' look sweet. I am in love with this Mesh Puffy Sleeve Top, I think it'll be a great all-rounder this season. It can be so difficult to try and find a nice top to go with any skirts, jeans or trousers but I think that this is one of those that looks great paired up with anything, especially these super cute Rose Vinyl Leggings. Now, I don't usually wear vinyl material clothes, but I really liked the way the leggings synched in on my waist and the fact I could just wear them out paired up with pretty much any top. If you’ve never worn vinyl clothes before then beware of the sound they make as you walk haha, I thought it sounded hilarious so it’s probably not the best choice to wear to the library, but it’ll be great for a night out! Next time I might go for a quieter alternative and try out a pair of faux leather leggings.

Outfit Number 3:

I was really excited for this to arrive as when I'm not at work I'm always at home in either loungewear or pyjamas because comfort is everything when you're at the ripe age of 23 (don't even ask). This Boxy Loungewear Set is something I never knew I needed until it arrived. I usually wear mismatched pyjamas or old leggings with oversized t-shirts, but this set is sort of glam which means I can comfortably wear it outdoors to different events just by accessorising slightly. This time I paired the co-rod with my nude boots from River Island and camel coat from Topshop. My only issue with this set is that the trousers don’t have a proper drawstring belt - it only has two tassels sewn onto the seam where the belt would usually be, which means that they don’t sit on my wait as well as I had hoped.

Overall, I found that the clothes came up a little bit small in size so I would suggest to size up a size or two when you order from Femme Luxe, but also take into consideration the lack of larger sizes as they only come up to size 12-14. I really enjoyed working with Femme Luxe and can't wait for any future collaborations.

*This post includes gifted items; however all my opinions are honest.

Have you shopped with Femme Luxe before? Which outfits do you like best? How would you style these outfits?

Lots of love,

Maya xo

SS19 || HOW TO STYLE A MIDI SKIRT THIS SEASON

Throughout my childhood, I always thought that midi skirts were for Grannies as my beautiful Great-Grandmother (bless her soul) always wore them with a T-shirt and a big chunk cardigan. One family member, in particular, kept telling me to wear either full length or short skirts to make my legs look longer - being 5ft3 clearly has its downs, but now I'm embracing my height and rocking the midi skirt trend (if I do say so myself)!

I now own 5 (I think) midi skirts which I have collected over the past year and I can't wait to get more wear out of them this season. This particular snake-print one is my new favourite as it is the softest thing I have ever touched and looks amazing on. It's from H&M and is only £12.99 - I managed to get mine for only £7.99 as I'm a member of the H&M club and had a £5 reward to use up (it is free for anyone to join and you get unlimited free delivery with no minimum spend).
In this picture, I'm wearing it with a cute 'You Glow Girl' slogan tee (similar here), and these gorgeous croc style burgundy boots from Topshop.

I feel like a cute slogan tee will always look really good with a midi skirt, however, I also like to style them with an oversized jumper tucked it. At first, I felt really silly wearing a long skirt with a big knitted jumper but I received so many compliments when I wore that outfit that now I'm kicking myself for not taking any pictures to share with you!  But I do have a couple of pictures of a different skirt and t-shirt combo that I thought you'd appreciate:

The 'Honey' t-shirt is from New Look which I bought a while ago (similar here) and the Burberry style skirt is from H&M (similar here, here and here). I absolutely love this combo and it upsets me that both original items are sold out so you can't get your hands on them anymore, but if I were you I'd definitely look up the skirt on eBay as someone might be selling one!

As you can probably tell, I really like to wear my midi skirts with t-shirts, but as I previously mentioned they also go great with oversized knitted jumpers or even sweatshirt style jumper! I'm definitely down for this trend this season and you should be too!

What are some of the trends you're loving this season? 

*This post contains affiliate links.

Lots of love,

Maya xo