I'm not sure about you but shopping seems really fun at the moment. There are so many bargains to be had in the sales but better still the new season stuff is starting to trickle through. Yes, it's a heatwave and nobody wants to buy autumn knits just yet but fashion seems to have realised that 

 September and October are lovely warm months in the UK and are prepping us accordingly.

Last week I popped down to the Feathers Store in Knightsbridge with Farfetch to check out their boutique. Their lower level floor is filled to the brim with cool designers and their new collections. I'd forgotten how nice it is to spend time browsing in store and their edits are so good (check out there online boutique at Farfetch here). The first thing I picked out was this top by Rahul Mishra. I'd never heard of the Indian designer before, but the level of detail is just exceptional. Follow his Instagram account (a real gem) here.

Next up, boyfriend jeans - the long forgotten essential in my wardrobe! Long term readers of the blog will remember the days when I lived in my ASOS Brady jeans (here). When I say lived I mean 360 odd days of the year... Somehow I'd totally forgotten how great they are as a jean fit, but these Frame denim ones put me back in my place. So comfortable, so soft and so good for running about town - I kept on hugging my own legs with happiness... Shop Frame here.

Accessories wise, my sunglasses are from Givenchy, here. I've worn them a lot so you've probably already seen them on my Instagram here. I love that they are super simple, but have little studs at the top for an added edge. Yes, they're an investment but I can't see these going out of style anytime soon... My bag is from a new designer (for me at least) that I discovered at Feathers; Marsell. The leather was insanely soft...

Ooh and the shoes. They were a cheeky Zara purchase. I was out a couple of weeks ago and realised I didn't have time to change to meet the girls before dinner (and was in my gym kit) so popped in to buy something in the sale = error. Ended up with these new in shoes and this dress, £90 poorer but 100% happier. Last but not least but you can hopefully just see my Rosie Fortescue rose gold hoops - I've been wearing them non stop since her launch dinner, the quality for the price insane, check out the whole collection here.

Last week I was having a rummage through my photos and realised I never posted this outfit! These were taken on my weekend away with the girls back in May and I remember thinking "it's too cold to post these now for the UK" and then obviously it slipped my mind. We were walking through Marrakech in the baking heat trying to find the main square. Emma and Lindsey had never been and I wanted to see their faces when they saw the snake charmers and the dentist (who has a little stall, you choose your replacement tooth, he knocks yours out and shoves the other one in - yep, really).

Sadly as we are idiots we didn't find it. In fact I'm pretty sure we just walked around in a circle, got too hot so went back to the safety of our hotel. However, we did stop to take some pictures. I'd just bought this shirt and was questioning the investment. I'd ummed and ahhed over it for weeks and weeks; I love green shirts as it's basically a staple colour and looks great with all my blues, greys and blacks.

 Two months on I can confirm it's one of the smartest buys I've ever made. I love Equipment, but have only ever bought their silks before... As this is a linen blend it's very lightweight. The criss cross detail means it looks great thrown over a bikini, or if you want to wear it at home you can tighten it up or wear a vest underneath. Buy it here.

The shorts and shoes are this year's summer staples and I apologise for the constant feature in my feed! I'd been hunting for the perfect denim shorts for months - in fact make that years. I finally found them at Topshop which is fantastic as they didn't break the bank. Find them here - and they come in various shades of denim here. The shoes are from Havaianas here and are fantastic as they're made from flip flop material but are espadrilles. I have a couple of pairs now and on holiday I really don't need anything else... They're also excellent for late night dog walking ;)

After the first wedding in Sicily, we drove to Palermo, caught the ferry to Naples overnight and drove on to Amalfi - all in twenty four hours. We found a teeny little hotel in neighbouring Atrani (here - and more on that village to come) and went for a walk along the coast to see what all the fuss was about.

The Amalfi Coast is everything you expect it to be. It oozes cool; everything you love about the sea and Italy in one place. It's the first place I've been to in a long time that has a clear dress code from the start. You need to have white and blue sundresses, floppy hats, off shoulder tops and expensive looking swimwear. Luckily the piece at the top of my suitcase was this dress from Monsoon. I'd seen it on a few blogger friends so when they asked if I'd like to wear some of their pieces on holiday I jumped at the chance.

Amalfi wise, we were really surprised by prices. We expected London-level charges on menus but a pizza and drinks in the nicest bar on the promenade (the first one if you hit it from the East) was around 20€ in total! Don't be fooled by no obvious large road veering you towards the centre of the town (behind the strip of hotels and shops on the sea front).  Venture down and of the little paths between them to discover the beautiful central square and incredibly impressive gold and black cathedral.


In truth, after a dip in the sea and a drink/meal there isn't all that much to do in Amalfi so I'd recommend using it as a base to discover neighbouring Positano and nearby Ravello. It's also a great place to catch a boat trip over to Capri. As a really boring final tip if you're driving; don't bother trying to park in Amalfi itself as it's absolute carnage. Instead go to the LunaRossa car park between Atrani and Amalfi and walk through their own tunnel to the heart of the town...

outfit details at the base of this post

Oh and the sea... I mean just look at the photo below (which has had no editing whatsoever). Who can resist a dip in that ocean?!

dress = blue and white dress, Monsoon (US shoppers use this link) / similar here (just order this, love it)

sunglasses = polaroid lenses, Polaroid

When we realised we had ten days between two weddings in Italy we knew instantly we wanted to do a bit of a road trip. As if by magic Alcatel got in touch to tell us about their new POP 4 phone and an amazing deal to get return flights to one to of 9 destinations over the summer when you buy the handset (discover more here). As Rome was one of the destinations I leaped at the chance to visit it and meet the challenge of experiencing the city in 48 hours. 

We drove from Tuscany (more on that later in the month) which took about 2 and a half hours. I'd been forewarned that driving in Rome was absolutely mental, but having experienced some of the sharp twists, turns and driving styles for the previous two weeks it really didn't seem that bad! We arrived at our hotel (incredible find, if you're going you must stay here: Trevi Palace) smack bang in the centre and parked opposite for 6€ a day...

Few things to know about these steps: Keats and Byron lived next door (viewers of The Trip will know this), Susan Sarandon conceived her first child on them and in 2007 someone attempted to drive down them in a Toyota Prius, and failed. We took some recommendations (thank you, Twitter) and went up to Il Palazzetto for a quick drink on their rooftop bar - perfect if you want a view of the Steps and not be covered in other tourists.

From there we caught the tube to the Colosseum. I'd done this before and wasn't all that bothered, but as the boy hadn't it was the first time in my life the expression "when in Rome" made perfect sense. To be fair it was actually really good, there is something pretty electrifying about walking through something with that level of history and theatre about it.  From there we grabbed a quick drink in a nearby bar (you really can't go wrong in Rome, it's all good) and went back to the hotel to freshen up before an evening stroll.

Freshly showered (needed, Rome was 38 degrees) we wandered from the Trevi Fountain to the Pantheon (do bother to read up on this Roman building as it really is quite special, housing the world's largest dome until the 1960s - pretty incredible considering it is two thousand years old) to Piazza Navano for a drink whilst watching the world go by. Following that we found a great little pizza place just around the corner and filled out boots with freshly baked carbohydrates before bed.

Up and at them the following morning, we had a quick breakfast at the hotel (exceptional, seriously do stay at this place, here) and drove over to St Peters Square. Admittedly, we should have been more organised. If you want to see things like the Sistine Chapel then you need to book weeks in advance unless you fancy queuing for four hours under a baking hot sun. We didn't so instead we explored the Basilica and the tombs of the Popes which was very special. I was quite taken back by the power of the architecture...

I really can't recommend a city break enough. Living in Europe (!!) it's easy to forget how close we are to all these places. Flights take 2 hours and at really good times to help you make the most of a weekend. To keep an eye on all the adventures involved in the Alcatel POP 4 project follow the hashtag #makeitpop4 on Instagram (find me here) and to discover more about their return flight offer visit their site here.

Followers of my Instagram here will know I've been away as it was blasted out as much as possible. I'm not even sorry; we'd been waiting for this holiday since Christmas and it was even better than I anticipated. Over the next couple of weeks I'll pop more details about our travels through Sicily, Amalfi, Tuscany and Rome but for now here is a quick post about a pit stop we made in Ravello on our way down to the Amalfi Coast.

When we first arrived, we were a little haggered after an overnight ferry trip from Palermo to Naples. The winding roads of Amalfi didn't make for the easiest journey, so we peeled ourselves out of the car and made a run for the nearest source of cold beer...

After a couple of drinks we finally felt our shoulders go down and relax. Finally, we were on holiday. We sat and watched the locals put the world to rights as only Italians can do... Popping from cafe to restaurant to bar all over the town we made the walk down to Villa Cimbrone. This was somewhere firmly on the list of places to see for us, having watched Rob Brydon and Steve Coogan sit on the terrace there during The Trip TV Series...

We were not disappointed, despite the walk (girls, do not even think about taking heels to Amalfi!) down what felt like 1000 back streets, mainly uphill. I had possibly one of the best gin and tonics I'd ever tasted with cracked pepper and cucumber in. 

Ooh and the outfit! I'd been pining to wear this Topshop dress ever since I bought it. The weather in the UK just hasn't been kind enough... The detail on the sleeves, the floaty shape... I just love it. Topshop have done a few dresses like this, the blue and white version here has been a bestseller for them so they followed it up with my one here and a polka dot one here. 

The shoes are from Mango, and a total steal. They are incredibly similar to the Chloe designer ones, but only £24 in the sale... And I really can vouch for them being comfortable, I wore them to death on holiday. Get yours here.

We loved this town so much we ended up going back for an impromptu night at Hotel Caruso, which ended up being the showstopper of the entire holiday. More to come! For all outfit details, see the base of this post...

Dress = floral print, Topshop / similar here / similar here

Shoes = strap block heels, Mango

Shirt = white shirt, Gap

Trousers = chinos, Ralph Lauren

Shoes = brogues, Grenson