Style Crush #14 : Claire Danes

 Claire Danes hasn't really been on my style radar until recently. My first thought of Claire Danes is as Juliet in Baz Luhrmann's Romeo and Juliet with Leonardo Dicaprio. I have seen that film at least ten times and expect to see it plenty more as an English teacher! She was very young back then and looks totally different now. Another film I've seen (and loved) her in was Stardust. She's a fully fledged blonde in Stardust and looks like a mix between Gwyneth Paltrow and Reese Witherspoon.

The reason Claire Danes is my most recent style crush is because I saw her in the latest tv series Homeland. I haven't actually had time to watch the whole series but the bit I did see was pretty intriguing. I'm considering a Homeland marathon when I have the time! Anyway, I'd also seen a picture floating around of her in a red/pink Valentino dress and decided that I should have a look into other things she has worn. I liked what I saw so thought I'd share. Here are some favourites:

The Valentino dress. Just on the right side of Barbie!

Classy but still a little quirky

Love the red lace and simple black shoes

Another cute combition. I think she looks a bit Tess Daly here. Anyone agree?

Rocking the red lipstick

Dresses below: Not sure I'd personally wear the one on the left but I think it looks amazing on her! The black dress with lace sleeves on the right is beautiful. The cropped lace sleeves with flower details on look really delicate and pretty.

I have fallen in love with this dress. The shade of pink matches her blusher too. Love love love.

Dresses below: I wish I owned all of these. I actually wore a very similar dress to the dark blue one to my graduation ball. It was from Very.co.uk and cost me £70 which is the most I've ever spent on a piece of clothing. Probably not that much in comparison to others but it's loads for me! Unfortunately someone spilt a drink down it and I've never been able to get it out.  Anyyyyway, the orange dress is cute and summery but fitted enough to be an evening dress too. The glittery dress seems to be the obligatory celebrity dress but nevertheless it looks stunning on Claire Danes.

 Massive wardrobe envy right now. 

In other news, I downloaded the Ebay app for my phone which was clearly a dangerous idea. I bid away and ignore the fact that I will actually have to pay for the items at the end of it. So far I've bought too dresses and I'm bidding on two more at the moment. Think I might have to put some clothes of mine on there soon because I keep seeing similar things making a fair amount of money! I also discovered instagram for androids so I've been uploading snaps on there. Mostly food! If you want to follow me on any of my various accounts then the links are below:

Hellocotton

Pinterest

Weheartit

 Bloglovin

Twitter

Fashion fix #21: Urban Outfitters

Quick post today. Just thought I'd share some of the lovely accessories at Urban Outfitters. I did actually make this picture a while ago so I can't guarantee it will all still be available! Oops. I drafted this post and then forgot about it! Anyway, it all looks quite vintage style and I guess that's what I go for nowadays. I'm seriously considering buying this watch because mine is on the way out and I like the fact it has a little map in the watch face.

That's all for now. I did say it would be quick! I need to get watching The Apprentice on catch up before someone ruins it for me on twitter. Shh.. don't tell me!

I love #10

I'm not sure what I should have titled this post but I kept it as 'I love' because it fits in with my other picture posts. It's probably more of a thoughts and wishes post really. Here are a few things that have caught my eye in the last few days.

I wish this was my room.

Colour pop

If only my dressing room was this organised...

Sausage dog cuties

Outfit love

Ombre tulips

I want him so badly.

Perfect pins and pink

Shake it out

Sometimes all a girl needs is her best friends. I was lucky enough to win a free meal at Le Bistrot Pierre and I took three of my favourite girlies to treat ourselves and have a much needed night out. We were all allowed two free courses but ended up buying a dessert too because the rest of the meal was so delicious.

Pictures above: wine, cheers to the Easter break and HK having a starring role on my blog. 

I had to take photos on my phone as I'd forgotten my camera so here's what we had. Apologies for the iffy quality. I can promise you that the food looked and tasted stunning!

Starters:

The above are pictures of my starter. It was grilled St. Marcelin cheese with red onion confiture and sourdough toast. Naughty but gorgeous.

The girls had (from left to right):  Toasted brioche with fricassée of mushrooms with crispy Alsace bacon; Mackerel pâté chosen from the specials board; Coarse pork pâté served with cornichons and sourdough toast. All of them looked gorgeous. I definitely want to try the mushrooms next time. I might even have to recreate it at home. We all lapped up the starters and wine quite quickly. It was one of those moments where the table falls silent because you're enjoying the food so much!

Mains:
 

Above (left to right): Le Bistrot Pierre's Boeuf Bourguignon - thick slices of beef with shallots, red wine, mushrooms and bacon; Risotto with cep mushroom, roasted pumpkin, white wine,
wild rocket and mascarpone cheese; Sous-vide and pan-fried pork with Dijon mustard, creamed leeks,
thyme, Parmesan and Stornoway black pudding. I got much amusement from Holly Kate attempting to order the Bourguignon with various different pronunciations!

And now for my main...

I'm a simple girl and love nothing more than a giant slab of meat with some garlic and crunchy chips. I've not been feeling all that good recently so to have a big meal like this was a real treat. I have my steak cooked medium rare and it was perfectly cooked with a generous dollop of garlic butter. The steak knife was the size of my arm which only helped me to wolf this down with extra speed. The chips were perfectly seasoned and crunchy, none of that soft squidgy nonsense. I think if I had to choose one meal as my last then this might very well be it.

After the mains we all groaned about how incredibly full we were and how we couldn't move. However, as soon as the friendly waitress offered us the dessert menus we couldn't really say no! It would be rude to say no, surely? So we decided that a small dessert wouldn't hurt...

Desserts:

I only managed to get a photo of one of the desserts as we were too busy tucking in and catching up.

This is the chocolate torte with whipped maple and Grand Marnier cream. This wasn't my dessert, I was too busy getting excited about my Lemon and Passionfruit Posset with crumble. It was definitely one of the best desserts I've ever had. Another one to add to my 'recreate at home' list.

Our evening had the perfect start with a lovely (and extremely large) meal, great service and time to catch up and reflect with friends. I just want to say a big thank you to the staff at Le Bistrot Pierre for being so helpful and friendly. Particular thanks to Gemma who let me change my booking last minute.  I was so happy to win their Dish of the Month competition and be able to eat there again. I'd definitely recommend the restaurant to everyone.

Have a look at their website here and if you want to have a go at the competition yourself then look for 'Dish of the Month' on the website. I think it might be about to change though because it's now April. Here's what I made to enter previously... Mussels. 

After the meal we all headed for a night out with many cocktails, including my new favourite drink, the Frozen Strawberry Daiquiri.

Happy Easter time guys and girls xx