Floral Pyjama Trousers

These floral pyjama-style trousers were a bit of an impulse purchase from H&M at Selfridges as I'm tired of wearing skinny jeans, and know this style suits me (and my butt).

I went through a stage in Autumn 2010 when I wore this style of trousers non-stop. See my Topshop leopard print trousers here, River Island Purple trousers here, and River Island black glitter trousers here.

I wore these a lot on my holiday in France, with white COS t-shirts for casual and a See by Chloe white blouse for a little more pulled together look. I also wore them with a navy blue COS lace tank and heels going out with friends the night I bought them. Ok, I admit. I haven't really taken them off...

You can buy them for £29.99 online here.

NHG x

Parisian Stripes

The first two times I visited Paris I went to the Eiffel tour to admire it's grand beauty, but then stopped visiting as I started to discover the less 'touristy' side of the city. 

On my recent trip I decided I wanted to see it again, especially since it was a glorious 27c day with the clearest blue sky. It's just a shame that I wasn't organised on this trip and didn't pre-book tickets to climb to the top...it would have been stunning up there.

I normally only wear this Marc by Marc Jacobs striped blue dress when on a beach holiday but thought I'd wear it around the city with silver Bloch ballet flats since the weather was so nice and who can resist wearing stripes when in Paris? NHG x

Ibiza

I've just returned from 3 days and 3 nights in Ibiza to celebrate my friend's 30th birthday. The highlight was definitely seeing Sasha at Ushuaia Beach Hotel! It is definitely the best clubbing experience I've ever had so I highly recommend checking it out if you are ever in Ibiza.

I'm happier having dinners with friends over clubbing these days so I wouldn't normally go, but it was definitely fun and something I've wanted to tick off my bucket list before I turn 30 next year...we may even go back to celebrate mine if my friends have anything to do with it! NHG x

Outfit details: River Island embroidered and fringed dress from ASOS, Nine West tan gladiator sandals.

Dreaming of France

I'm a self-confessed Francophile. I love all things French and I've visited at least twice per year since arriving in London. I've tried to learn French three times (if you include high school) but have resigned to the fact that I'll need to move there if I was ever to actually learn.

Where we stayed:
Bandol: I'm not going to recommend our hotel but will recommend Hotel Ile Rousse Bandol (where we wanted to stay) instead. It's the only 5 star hotel in the area and overlooks a gorgeous beach.

Provence: La Maison Sur La Sorgue, a Mr & Mrs Smith hotel. This 18th century townhouse is located in a picturesque market town in Provence surrounded by canals. We stayed in a two bedroom suite which was luxuriously decorated (the owners have a homewares store attached to the house). 

Dordogne: Chateau Les Marles, another Mr & Mrs Smith Hotel. Full of wealthy Brits and families, this is a nice countryside hotel, but probably not for everyone. The hotel room was fairly plain and standard, but the shared areas and restaurant were lovely.

Paris: Again, I'm not going to recommend where we stayed as I bought it on Secret Escapes. It was a bargain for what it was but I would never pay full price. I recommend Hotel Duo in the Maris district which is a Mr & Mrs Smith hotel (surprise, surprise...)

Where we ate (worth mentioning): Joy restaurant in Hyres (Modern French), Le Vivier in Provence (Modern French), Au Rouleau de printemps in Paris (Vietnamese), Leo Siam in Paris (Thai),  L'Ange 20 in Paris (French).

Where we shopped: If you read my blog you'll know I'm obsessed with French fashion - especially brands such as Sandro and A.P.C, but thanks to Vestiaire I've become obsessed with Claudie Pierlot. I bought an amazing fitting pair of black trousers there after months of looking.

I also visited my usual stores: Merci, Colette, and the vintage stores in the Le Marais district. Top of my list was also a visit to City-Pharma to stock up on my French Pharmacy products (post coming soon). You can see where I visited during my trip in October last year here.

NHG x

Wilderness Festival

Wilderness Festival is like nothing I've ever experienced before. Rather than focusing on music like your typical British festival, Wilderness is all about celebrating the arts and outdoors on a picturesque estate in Oxfordshire. Don't get me wrong, there is still plenty of folk music, but it's the wild swimming, midnight masked balls in the forest, arts and crafts, yoga, alternative therapies, thespian performances and philosophical talks that sets this festival apart. 

I was lucky enough to go with work (Hunter) who were running festival photography workshops with Fuji, a welly boot swap and style hunting fashionable festival-goers with Grazia magazine. The weather was absolutely perfect all weekend and our guest (and my friend) Briony from A Girl, A Style and I had a lovely weekend dressing up along with the 'Temperley hippies' and dreaming about wearing flower garlands in our everyday lives. More posts to follow...NHG x

Outfit details: Sonia by Sonia Rykiel dusty pink dress, Bella & Fifi flower garland, Mulberry leopard necklace, Hunter Original Gloss boots in Raspberry. 

Sunflower fields of Dordogne

I let out a little squeal when I spotted my first sunflower field as we drove into Dordogne. I was so excited by these bright yellow 'happy' flowers that I literally ran through knee high grass straight into STINGING NETTLE. I was then caught between happiness and serious pain (thank god I had Avene thermal spray in the car for relief) as I admired this stunning sight in the French countryside.

While I was snapping photos with not a soul in sight, as if on cue, a little bunny hopped through the fields and into the apple orchard next to the field. So, so lovely.

There are literally acres and acres of sunflowers fields throughout Dordogne at this time of year. They really are a sight to behold. Just watch out for the bees...and stinging nettle! NHG x

Outfit details: Marc by Marc Jacobs printed dress, Chanel sunglasses.

Bandol

I love travelling to the South of France. It's probably my favourite place in all Europe. Big call, I know.

Instead of going back to flashy Saint Tropez this Summer, we decided to go further along the coast to visit the coastline of Provence (known as Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur). The area is as good as the Côte d'Azur in my opinion, minus the tourists and ridiculously rich people and their mega yachts. It's also nowhere near as expensive for accommodation or eating out.

We had originally booked Hotel Ile Rousse Thalazur in Bandol which looks amazing (we visited the beach it's located on) but had to change once there was three of us travelling. We also went on a day trip to nearby Cassis which is home to amazing Calanques. The Calanques are are basically inlets of crystal clear water surrounded by limestone cliffs and can only be accessed by hiking or a boat ride (read about them here).When I return I also plan to visit Porquerolles, an island off Hyères which looks a-maz-ing.

Best restaurant we visited in the region was Restaurant Joy in Hyères which is featured in many Gourmet guides, including the Michelin Guide. Owned by a husband and wife team, I highly recommend it for a French/Fusion cuisine.

You can easily fly to the region in two hours from London to either Nice or Marsille airport. I'm already planning my return in 2013! NHG x

Beach outfit details: H&M nautical dress, French Connection dusty pink Trilby hat, Havaianas in silver.

The Borrowers Club - Chanel 2.55

I was recently invited to rent a designer bag from The Borrowers Club. I've long dreamed about owning my very own Chanel Jumbo 2.55 bag and this was the perfect way to test the bag without spending the £2,500 required to own my very own.

The process is very simple. You order your bag online at The Borrowers Club and select which day you would like to commence your 5 day rental on. The bag then arrives by Special Delivery and on the 5th day, you post it back with the pre-paid Special Delivery bag included.

I highly recommend this for anyone who has a special occasion where you require a more glamorous bag than usual (perfect for weddings or special events!), or for someone like me, who doesn't particularly want to spend thousands on a bag to discover it doesn't fit in with my lifestyle!

Carrying the Chanel Jumbo 2.55 was amazing and it really did lift every outfit, but I was nervous carrying it, and even hid it in another large carrier bag when we went to Meat Liquor last week for fear of the bag taking on the pungent smell of the restaurant! I also don't think I would ever use this bag in an 'everyday' sense so the cost-per-wear just wouldn't be there. Although in saying that, this style is a true classic and the price seems to increase every season, so it's definitely an 'investment' piece.

You can see all designer bags available for rent here including Mulberry, Chanel, Miu Miu, Chloe, and Louis Vuitton. What is your dream bag? NHG x

Outfit details: Sandro lace top, Claudie Pierlot bow trousers, United Nude sandals, Chanel Jumbo 2.55 bag c/o The Borrowers Club, Chanel sunglasses.