backpack, Lipault / coat, Great Plains / dress, Zara / shirt, Olive (old) / shoes, Gucci

Last week I did a poll on my Instagram asking the kind of content you wanted to see. I was really surprised how many of you want more career and work stuff, even going as far as advice which is immensely flattering. As much as when I look back each move I made has neatly led me to where I am now, it was never on purpose. It all started here, on South Molton Street. 

When Lipault (pronounced "lee-po" for anyone wondering) opened a store here and asked me to spread the word, given how brilliant their back pack has been for my pretty manic lifestyle, I thought I'd pull it all together and write this post. They've just launched a collection in collaboration with Jean Paul Gaultier, which is in store up until Christmas (possibly January).

backpack, Lipault / coat, Great Plains / dress, Zara / shirt, Olive (old) / shoes, Gucci

If any one is wondering where the name came from, I worked really locally and used to walk to work down here everyday. Compared to the crazed hustle of Oxford Street, South Molton Street is a bit of a haven. As soon as you turn down here everything calms down. People look more relaxed, better dressed, they're friendly... It's a hugely noticeable difference from everything that surrounds it. It also, may I add, has brilliant shops. You can pretty much get everything you need on this road. When the Lipault team said they'd opened a store here it was no surprise, it suits them perfectly. 

I live very close to their Hampstead store and had been oogling at a backpack for a few weeks. It sounds silly but now that I'm rushing around, usually with a dog in tow needing one arm - and an Oyster card needing the other - a backpack has become a bit of a must have. I scoured the market and had spotted this one whilst walking past the store, so it was all a bit serendipitous when this collaboration came up! Their "Parisienne" aesthetic is completely me, and such a favourite for the girls in France. In my last job before One Roof I used to travel to Paris almost weekly. Every time I stood in that taxi rank I'd see at least 5 Lipault luggage pieces and handbags...

backpack, Lipault / coat, Great Plains / dress, Zara / shirt, Olive (old) / shoes, Gucci

So, how did it all happen? Back in 2011 I was recovering from an operation with my family. I had my gallbladder removed (super unusual at 26, and I'm pretty sure led to a lot of further problems, but that's another story) and was on bed rest for a month. After about four days I was going stir crazy and I had just got into things like Twitter and reading blogs (there was no Instagram and Pinterest) and decided I'd start my own. I can vividly remember getting 50 followers on Twitter and thinking "woah,  this is getting quite big now." Oh, how ridiculous I was.

There was never a plan, there wasn't even the opportunity for a plan at that time. Every one who had a blog did it for the fun of it. I worked it around my day job, I didn't put my face on it for two years either. That wasn't a conscious decision, you just didn't have to then. Over time I moved into marketing roles and started to notice the disparity between the knowledge and requirements brands had when they wanted to partner with influencers, versus what influencers needed and wanted from campaigns when they paired up with them. Influencer marketing became exactly that; marketing. 

backpack, Lipault / coat, Great Plains / dress, Zara / shirt, Olive (old) / shoes, Gucci

By this point I had moved to Vestiaire Collective and was working on their marketing, PR and social. It was a very different company then, there were 3 of us in London when I joined. My job was to help get the concept off the ground and essentially I went around the market trying to find an agency that could help me with influencers. I needed someone who could tell me why I was investing in certain influencers and what I could expect from it. I couldn't find one. It was a genuine roadblock, and meant I couldn't get sign off for any influencer work. I realised it was possible and to cut a long story short (fast forward two years and another period of ill health that once again inspired me to give it a go) and One Roof Social was born. 

backpack, Lipault / coat, Great Plains / dress, Zara / shirt, Olive (old) / shoes, Gucci

I don't have any formal business experience, only what I'd taken from working for start ups. I also don't particularly have any empire dreams so I struggle to resonate with the majority of the "girl boss" crew. I know I want a nice house one day, but I don't need the yacht or the private jet - or the "fame" that so many entrepreneurs seem to crave. I also want 100 maltese terriers, but I'm pretty sure we'll just meet in a park one day and they'll follow me home at their own free will.

I started out working from my kitchen table, calling up brands I thought could do a better job with their influencer stuff and gradually it all built up. The fact I now have staff and an office and some brilliant clients is testament to the amazing people I have around me. It took a lot of time, a lot of all-nighters (not the fun kind) and a million coffees with friends and former colleagues with more experience than I had. I'm trying to create a company I want to work for, surrounded by people I want to work with. You've got to seriously believe in what you do because it's incredibly hard, I honestly think the reason so many small businesses fail is because people see an opportunity in a market and go for it - hoping for riches, rather than genuinely being passionate about what they're doing.

backpack, Lipault / coat, Great Plains / dress, Zara / shirt, Olive (old) / shoes, Gucci

Ok, so, here are 10 tips I wish I was given at the beginning:

1. Structure. Give yourself it. Seriously. Even if it is "yoga on Mondays" and "gin on Thursdays" thats OK. You will need it. I have two days a week where I do not leave my desk. It's particularly important when I have a team, but before all that it meant that I was never panicked about shoe horning actual work in between all the meetings and coffees you have at the beginning.

2. Be Humble. I will never trust a CEO who doesn't have staff. CEO of what exactly? Be open, honest and genuine with what you are trying to do - both to yourself and those around you. Rome wasn't built in a day. You'll learn to spot these people and avoid them like the plague. Don't be one of them. Take your time and never over exaggerate - especially to people who can actually help you. 

3. Breathe. Rapid success doesn't come overnight, or at least long term success rarely does. Slow down, do things properly. As someone said to me recently "sh*t that travels at the speed of light is still sh*t." If it takes an extra three weeks for your website to go live, that really sucks. But when it does go live, it'll be better for it.

4. Meet people but don't rely on them. Look, lets say it out loud. There is a "type" of person that starts a business and thinks "I know so many people who can help me get this going." There lies their first mistake. List out people who's advice you can benefit from, and ask nicely if you can buy them a coffee/breakfast/gin to hear it. After that, it's down to you to take what they say and apply the stuff to your own strategy. Favour-asking, no matter how elaborate and covered-up, is really quite annoying. My friends who run businesses and I all have a rule; we pay each other for what we do and we don't take freebies. It's massively important. Also, if someone isn't able to meet you don't be offended or pester them - if they like your idea they'll come to you when they have time.

5. Keep some balance. For the benefit of your business' success, step away regularly. Go and have a drink with your best friend and allow yourself ten minutes to moan about work. Then stop. Talk about something else. Go on holiday for the sake of your sanity even if it feels like a mistake. Enjoy it, leave your phone in the hotel (God, I wish someone had told me that). Nobody really gives a sh*t about seeing the beach on Instagram. Not a single person.

6. Blog on the side. If, like me, you have a blog you want to keep going alongside your work understand that it's secondary to everything else - even if it's more fun. I see so many influencers fail because they applied too much time into the fluffy stuff (free lunches, wandering around Notting Hill having pictures taken). I realised, and accepted, pretty early on that my blog was never going to hit the big time. So I treat it like a hobby and it always comes second to One Roof. I do it at weekends, I meet my photographer once a month, and I bash out all the content for the month in one go. Is it hard? Yeah. Does it pay itself back twenty times over? Hell yes. I haven't paid for a face cream or a pair of shoes for five years... It's really rather excellent. It took time though, I blogged (and paid for all my stuff) for years before anyone gave me anything. Never lose that, never expect to be constantly paid because that's where audiences get fed up.

7. Watch Scandi Crime Dramas in the evenings. Sounds weird, but I find these amazing because they are subtitled and you have to watch the screen and can't glance at your phone or be distracted. You have to concentrate 110% which means you forcibly switch off. 

8. Get an Accountant (unless you are one). Oh my lord. There are so many forms and things you have to do, my brain exploded under the weight of it all. Hiring someone for a day a month at the beginning was the best advice I was given. I honestly think I'd have lost the plot. 

9. Have a cry, and a bath. A new business is like a new baby (from what I can gather). The first month is precious but mental. Everyone is so excited for you, but when push comes to shove, it's down to you to keep it alive. Just when you think it all calms down and you can sleep through the night they throw you a curve ball. Leaving the house is a challenge. You never have time for yourself. You eat whatever is available. Washing? Pah, only when you have people around you who won't judge. Sleep... sure. It will pass, and the sooner you can force in some structure and some pragmatism the better. Also, call your best friend. Because she won't mind you telling her that you're in your clothes from a week ago and you just cried over needing to take the bins out. She'll still be really proud you're going for it.

10. Gin. Say no more.

Lastly, but very importantly, get a bl**dy backpack. Seriously. All that working from your kitchen table, in coffee shops and legging it from meeting to meeting is not good for you at all. In all seriousness I ended up at a physio at one point who told me one shoulder was 3 inches higher than the other, because I'd been lugging my laptop over my shoulder. I can very much recommend this one - and also recommend paying South Molton Street a visit. Or, you can visit their online store and use the hashtag #JPG20 to get 20% off the Jean Paul Gaultier collection.

This post was written in collaboration with Lipault. 

links to products = navy knit / green skirt / trainers / sunglasses / bag 

As followers of my Instagram will already know, a couple of weekends ago I went down to Barnsley House in the Cotswolds with Claire to shoot a project for L.K.Bennett. I chose the hotel having been there before, I went down last year and had a brilliant time but more importantly knew that the gardens would be the perfect place to shoot the outfits I'd picked out. Come and have a look...

links to products = navy knit / green skirt / trainers / sunglasses / bag 

I've worked with L.K.Bennett since the very beginning of my blog and for that reason they hold a really special place in my heart. I have small feet and struggle with heels because I don't have a lot of foot raise off the ground! Their Floret style works like an absolute dream for me. I don't know how they do it, but they're the only classic heel style I can wear all day without getting uncomfortable and swear by them. I can't count the number of times I have tried other styles and quickly reverted back to the Floret, also the pairs I have from years ago are still going strong so they really are worth the value. Any way, I am hugely digressing - this post is focussing on their Fitzroy Collection and L.K.Bennett's clothing offering as much as the footwear...

links to products = navy knit / green skirt / trainers / sunglasses / bag 

Skirts are trickier for me and the fact the two featured in this post fit me and I feel good in them says a lot because I am painfully fussy. I am quite short (5 foot 4 inches) with a bum and hips, and my legs aren't my favourite part so I really need a skirt to fit me (not dig, flatter, etc) if it's going to leave the house. This one is brilliant and when I picked it out for the shoot I had everything crossed that it would work because I'm trying to wear more green and wanted something I could wear throughout the summer that was a bit smarter than the cotton ones I already own.

In short it's perfect. I love it dressed down with outfits like this but also would wear with a white shirt and heels to the office. I love that they coordinate with the trainers that have the green detail on the back. In fact I love the trainers full stop. I'm wearing them as I type and - again - have had so many compliments and questions about them. They're super comfortable, somehow smarter than a sports-brand pair - but a hell of a lot more reasonable than some of the other premium brands. Find them here, they come with green, red or blue detail at the back. 

links to products = navy knit / green skirt / trainers / sunglasses / bag 

links to products = striped top / white midi skirt / raffia tote / sandals / sunglasses

 The skirt was the piece that leaped at me when I first saw the Fitzroy collection (there is also a red and white stripe version I'd recommend taking a look at, here) because I knew from previous experience of L.K.Bennett's skirts it'd fit me like a glove. Before the blog I was so hesitant to wear skirts of this length, but I've learnt that as long as the come in at the waist and ideally have buttons down the middle they can be really flattering. 

links to products = striped top / white midi skirt / raffia tote / sandals / sunglasses

 I love the skirt with the stripes, but I've since worn it with blue denim shirts, the navy knit in the previous outfits and various scrappy tops for daytime and absolutely love it. I feel really good it in, helped mainly by the belt detail at the top and the thickness of the fabric meaning it can give you a really good silhouette. 

links to products = striped top / white midi skirt / raffia tote / sandals / sunglasses

I already owned on this raffia bag and you'll most likely have seen it on my Instagram because I've used it a lot. I use L.K.Bennett for tote and clutch bags quite a lot (remember the stampede when the Mariel cross body bags first came out?) but this is quite different from them and I really love it. What I noticed most is the quality; lots of these raffia bags fall apart but this one is structured really well and keeps its shape. I can say that from experience as I accidentally left it at the bottom of my suitcase when I went to Sri Lanka and it came out looking like new despite being crinkled up for a long haul flight...

links to products = striped top / white midi skirt / raffia tote / sandals / sunglasses

Stripes wise, if you didn't know L.K.Bennett did them you really should. This isn't my first breton-style from the brand and I doubt it'll be my last. Having tried and tested hundreds of styles from various places I have to say that their ones are some of the best - and as a really boring but hopefully useful fact; even if you tumble dry them they come out without a crease.

links to products = striped top / white midi skirt / raffia tote / sandals / sunglasses

 Both these outfits were so fun to wear but the best thing about all of the pieces is that I'll wear them all lots with things I have in my wardrobe. They're all really good staples! As an additional thing, if you are looking for a weekend away I really can't recommend Barnsley House enough. The gardens are gorgeous, our room was absolutely stunning and the hot pool and spa area was gorgeous to sit out in - if you fancy it have a look here (also really recommend the lamb if you have dinner there). 

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est labour

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est labour

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est labour

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est labour

Photography by Claire Menary. Products were bought myself unless otherwise disclosed. This is a standard footer on all blog pieces; some links used in this post may be created with an affiliate tag meaning I will receive a small % of any purchases made as a result of clicking on them. This does not make any price difference for you, the consumer.

affiliate links marked with * / dress* / 

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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.

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Photography by Claire Menary. Products were bought myself unless otherwise disclosed. This is a standard footer on all blog pieces; some links used in this post may be created with an affiliate tag meaning I will receive a small % of any purchases made as a result of clicking on them. This does not make any price difference for you, the consumer.

It's officially summer and let me tell you how I know... My feet are out. As much as one of my things is keeping my nails nicely (I have a manicure every two weeks in the cheapy place by the station near me and it's my little treat to myself and has been for years) my feet don't always get the same love and care. When summer comes, so does the panic about about the state of my feet. So, when Marks and Spencer asked me to contribute to their Treat Your Feet campaign (see the content featuring a few influencers here) it really resonated as finding footwear that works for me for the start of the summer is really important. 

Summer footwear suitable for work is tricky. You can't usually wear flip flops or flimsy sandals, and if like me the sun suddenly appears from nowhere then your feet may not be quite ready for public attention. I'd had my eye on a pair of woven mules for ages having seen them on Instagram loads so was thrilled when the project meant I could get a pair...

It's not part of the post but I'd like to give a special mention to the shirt in this post. I had to build an outfit around the shoes and picked what I thought was quite a standard, generic white shirt. How wrong I was! It fits so well, much better than more expensive ones I already own (in fact I eBayed two of them because this one was so much better). I feel really good in it; it's slightly oversize but in the kind of way that you feel like you can move in it. I really like how it makes me feel, which sounds daft for a shirt. Basically if you're after a work shirt or just a white one I really recommend it. Find it here. 

I share my favourite tips for summer feet over on Marks and Spencer's website here, and you can find links to all the items above the pictures in this post. Thrilled with my new sandals, they come in brown too which I saw in store yesterday and they look really good. Quite tempted, although somehow brown doesn't feel smart enough for the office... What do you think?