BLOGGERS LOVE LFW

Som en avslutning på London Fashion Week, var jeg og Georgina på et BloggersLove event i går. Temaet var "Gossip Girl" og vi hadde meldt oss på både middagen og gifting loungen som var etterpå, og gledet oss til en fin kveld ute. En del ting gikk dessverre ikke helt slik det skulle der, og twitter-feeden min er nå full av misfornøyde bloggere, som i mine øyne er utrolig bitchy, enkelt og greit. Det var flere ting jeg ikke var fornøyd med selv, det var for eksempel et veldig lite lokale med alt for mange folk, og "gourmet-middagen" vår ble endret til en take away pizza, men jeg synes fortsatt ikke det er greit å være frekk. Jeg har jobbet med/ for Bloggers Love før, og skrevet om organisasjonen flere ganger. Jeg kjenner godt eieren av det, Danielle, som gjør absolutt alt selv, og jeg synes synd på henne som nå leser så mye negative tilbakemeldinger. Jeg ville derfor prøve å skrive et litt mer positivt, men fortsatt helt ærlig, innlegg om kvelden ♥

As an ending to London Fashion Week, me and Georgina went to the BloggersLove event, where we had signed up for a "Gossip Girl"-themed dinner and gifting lounge. We were looking for a fun night out, but unfortunately a few things did not go exactly as planned there, and my twitter-feed is now showing so many negative bloggers, which I think is not cool at all. There were of course several things that I would have liked to be different about the evening as well, for example how the venue was too small for the massive amount of bloggers attending, and that the "gourmet dinner" was changed to a take away pizza last minute [there is a reasonable explanation for this - read further down], but I still don't like people being rude - especially when it is while hiding behind the screen of a computer. I have worked with and for Bloggers Love before, and I also know the founder of it, Danielle, who is the sweetest person ever and who does everything by herself, so I felt especially bad for her when I saw all of the comments on twitter and rude blogposts. Therefore I wanted to write a bit more of a positive, but still totally honest, post about the night, while clearing up some things ♥

Georgina and I arrived at the venue around 5pm, after wandering up and down the street a few times, completely lost and unable to figure out google maps. When we went in, we were immediately met by a stunning venue, with white brick walls and a big open space. It seemed more than big enough at first, but then again we were not at all aware of how many people were actually coming for the gifting lounge at 6pm. The only thing I felt was missing when entering, was some relaxing background music to set the mood, and a place to leave our coats and bags. But, we didn't really mind much, and ended up just dumping our coats at a sofa there, before having a quick walk around the room, looking at the display of some of the brands showcasing there. 

The dinner was sadly a bit delayed, because of some mix up with the pizzas, but it didn't really feel like we waited for that long. The problem was rather that when we were done eating and went outside to the gifting lounge again it was completely packed with people, which made it almost impossible to move around and have a chat with the brands. But back to the dinner, which has been what a lot of people has complained about; I can't say that I was pleased with being served (cold) pizza from a take away box and water on the table, when I was promised a three-course meal and two drinks. To be honest? Yes, that was disappointing. It also made me feel really naive, when I actually still thought we were getting drinks. But, it turns out that was really not BloggersLove/ Danielle's fault, and that is why I feel so bad for her! The catering company she had originally ordered our food from "scammed" her in some way [read more on their twitter], so she had to quickly come up with a back up plan. That then became pizza, which of course I love and therefore didn't see too much of a problem with at first. The problem was though, that the money we payed for our meal [£28] had already been paid to the catering company, and they did not refund it. Danielle therefore had to use her own money (in addition to the £12 she had already spent for every original meal, since it was worth £40) to buy food to all of us. She did this no questions asked, no explanation given, because she is the kind of sweet person who don't need recognition. The only thing was though, that none of us knew that, and therefore we were a bit disappointed with the food we were given. Looking back now, I am really not anymore. 

When it comes to the gifting lounge, I heard that a lot of the bloggers felt that some of the companies there were "rude" and also did not care much about them, since they cared a lot more for the "celebrities" there. I don't think this should reflect badly on Bloggers Love themselves, as the brands who showcase there are independent from BloggersLove, and they do not really have much to do with each other. For next time, there could firstly maybe be some more brands (a lot of bloggers were expecting that) and they should also be aware of the situation of a gifting lounge - where bloggers except them to at least gift a few people. I am not saying that all of the brands were like that, I had lovely chats with so many of them, but there were a few who were almost ignoring and not really understanding of the situation. 

So, was it perfect? No, it was not, but it was still a good night, and a great effort made from BloggersLove. I think every company will have a bump in the road, and from here they can only build up stronger. Even though it was maybe not exactly what i expected, I did have a nice evening, and I also got to meet some great fellow bloggers. 

LFW: DAY 1 PHOTO DIARY

Photography by me and Georgina/ Notes La Mode

Fredag var den første offisielle dagen av LFW, og vi hadde en full dag med mye gøy. Vi så tre fantastiske show, som jeg skal blogge mer om senere, og hadde noen gode pauser i mellom dem hvor vi nøt litt god mat, drikke og selskap. Vi startet dagen på Somerset House, hvor du kan føle den fantastiske atmosfæren av LFW øyeblikket du ankommer. Vi var omgitt av fashionistas, fotografer og bloggere, og alle viste frem sin personlige stil. En samling av et slikt mangfold i stil, og så mange "crazy" antrekk, er det ikke like lett å finne noe annet sted. Det er virkelig fantastisk og inspirerende å se på folk der, og jeg anbefaler alle å ta en tur selv hvis du har sjansen. Etter vår første utstilling og noen bilder, dro vi over til Covent Garden hvor vi brukte et par timer å slappe av før vår neste show. Vi stoppet på en av mine favorittsteder der, Jamie Olivers Union Jack, hvor vi først hadde noen forretter og glass vin til lunsj, og senere nøt en fantastisk middag med kjærestene våre på The Secret Basement Bar. Vi avsluttet kvelden med PPQ nachspiel på Mason House, hvor jeg endelig skiftet til bootsene jeg hadde bært rundt i vesken min hele dagen (LFW confessions), etter rundt en 12-timers dag i hæler.

Friday was the first official day of LFW, and we had a full day of fun. We saw three amazing shows, which I will blog more about later, and had some great breaks in-between them where we enjoyed some good food, drinks and company. We started the day of at Somerset House, where you can feel the amazing atmosphere of LFW the minute you step in. We were surrounded by fashionistas, photographers and bloggers, and everyone was showing of their personal style. A collection of such a diversity in style, and so many "crazy" outfits, will not be easier to find anywhere else. It is truly amazing and inspirational to have a look at the people there, and I do recommend everyone to have a look for yourself if you do have the chance. After our first show and some photos, we headed over to Covent Garden where we spent a few hours relaxing before our next shows. We popped by one of my favorite spots Jamie Oliver's Union Jack there, where we first had a few starters and some glasses of wine for lunch, and later enjoyed a wonderful dinner with our boyfriends at the Secret Basement Bar. We finished the night with the PPQ afterparty at Mason House, where I finally changed to the boots I had carried around in my bag (LFW confessions), after around a 12-hour day in heels.

LFW: THE CATWALK EDIT

For meg og Georgina startet London Fashion Week (20. - 24. Februar) allerede på torsdag, med en full dag tilbrakt på det fineste lokalet Chelsea Old Town Hall. The Catwalk Edit er et pre-LFW arrangement som går over hele dagen, hvor det vises frem 60 (!) forskjellige brands over 8 catwalks, en hver time. Siden det er såpass mange brands kommer jeg ikke til å lage et innlegg om hver av de (som jeg skal med fredagens catwalks), så her kommer heller et lite oppsumeringsinnlegg, med mange bilder fra hele dagen.

For me and Georgina London Fashion Week (20th - 24th of February) started already at Thursday, with a full day spent at the most beautiful venue at The Chelsea Old Town Hall. The Catwalk Edit is a full day LFW event, showcasing 60 (!) brands over 8 catwalks, one every hour. Since there were so many different brands doing the catwalks there, I will not do a post on each of them (like I will do with the Friday catwalks), so instead here is a long post with a bunch of photos, summarizing the whole day. 

Vi startet dagen ganske tidlig, og møttes for lunsj på Joe & The Juice hvor vi koste oss med litt fersk mat og drikke, mens vi ladet opp for en hel dag med catwalks. Mens vi satt der inne, kikket jeg ut og over gaten, og så noe som raskt fanget oppmerksomheten min. Som du kan se fra uttrykket mitt på bildet ovenfor, var jeg extremt glad da jeg innså at det var en hel blokk med fargerike hus rett over gaten, så vi måtte bare løpe over og ta noen bilder. Vi endte opp med å ta noen gate outfit bilder, selv om det begynte å regne tungt og det var ganske kaldt ute. Jeg kommer til å dele resten av disse, som viser hele antrekket mitt for dagen, senere denne helgen.

We started the day quite early, meeting up for lunch at Joe & The Juice where we enjoyed some fresh food and drinks, preparing for the day filled with fashion shows. While sitting inside the cute café, I looked across the street where something quickly caught my eye. As you can see from my expression on the photograph above, I was more than excited when I realized there was a whole block of colorful houses right across the street, so we just had to head over and take some photos. We ended up doing some street outfit photos, even though it started raining heavily and it was quite cold outside. I will share the rest of these photos, showing my whole outfit for the day, later this weekend. 

Når vi kom fram for The Catwalk Edit, etter litt forvirring om hvor vi skulle gå og hva som foregikk, gikk vi inn i hallen hvor catwalkene var, og satte oss ned for vår første catwalk. Hver time var det et nytt show, og hvert show viste frem en bestemt kategori/ stil, som "undertøy, badetøy, womens wear" osv. Bildene ovenfor viser bare en ekstremt liten prosentandel av alle de fantastiske klær og merkene vi så der, og noen detaljer fra den vakre arenaen i seg selv. De fleste av merkene fra catwalken hadde også små "stands" hvor de hadde noen av varene sine hengende, og personer fra merket tilgjengelie som du kunne snakke med. Dette var spesielt flott for bloggere som oss, siden vi da kunne ha en prat med dem om merket og kolleksjonene, og både få og gi business kort for videre arbeid i fremtiden. Det var dermed virkelig mye å se på i-mellom showene, men det var også veldig hyggelig å bare sitte ned, lytte til den gode musikken og vente på neste catwalk å skje. Selv om det var noen (store) forsinkelser og tekniske problemer, var showene virkelig flotte, og modellene var veldig flinke til å holde ansiktene deres. Modellene fikk en ny styling for (nesten) hvert show, og jeg ble virkelig forelsket i spesielt en av de siste showene, hvor de hadde myke enkle krøller sammen med det nydelige undertøyet de viste frem. Selv om showene noen ganger ga meg litt mer en følelse av S/S enn A/W, hovedsakelig på grunn av mengden av store mønster og fargerike badetøy, sportstøy og annet, hadde dagen mye godt å tilby, og det var utrolig å se så mange forskjellige merker i løpet av en kort dag.

When we arrived for The Catwalk Edit, after a bit of confusion about where to go and what was going on, we went into the hall where the catwalks where, and sat down for our first show. Every hour there was a new show, and every show showcased a specific category/ style, like "lingerie, swimwear, womenswear" and so on. The photos above only show a incredibly small percentage of all the amazing clothes and brands we saw there, and a few details from the beautiful venue itself. Most of the brands from the catwalks also had small "stands" where some of their items were hanging, and you could talk to someone from the brand. This was really great for bloggers like us, who could have a chat with the designers and give out and receive business cards for further work in the future. There was really a lot to look at in-between shows, but it was also really nice to just sit down, listen to the great music and wait for the next catwalk to happen. Even though there were some (major) delays and technical difficulties, the shows were truly great, and the models were really good at keeping their faces straight. The models got a new styling for (almost) every show, and I really fell in love with one of the last shows, where they had soft subtle curls paired with the beautiful lingerie they were wearing. Even though the shows sometimes gave me a bit more of a S/S vibe than A/W, mostly because of the amount of big printed and colorful swim wear, sports wear and other items, the day had a lot of good to offer, and it was amazing to see that many different brands on the course of one day. 

LONDON FOOD: CEREAL KILLER CAFE

Sist onsdag tok jeg og jentene hadde en tur til Shoreditch, hvor vi spiste på en virkelig unik og annerledes kafé, Cereal Killer Café. Navnet i seg selv gir fra seg mye, dette er faktisk en kafé som serverer frokostblanding! Den er fortsatt ganske ny (åpnet høsten 2014), og alle som har hørt om den her lengter etter å gå, så det var utrolig gøy å endelig prøve det ut. Å ha lunsj der er veldig annerledes fra lunsjen du kanskje er vant med fra andre kafeer, med egg, pannekaker og salater, men det er det som gjør det så gøy. Det kan høres litt "unødvendig" ut, siden du kan spise frokostblanding med melk hjemme når som helst, men jeg lover dere: denne kafeen har et mye større utvalg enn skapet ditt.

Last Wednesday me and the girls had a trip to Shoreditch, where we ate at a truly unique and different café, the Cereal Killer Café. The name itself gives off a lot, this is actually a café serving cereal! It is still quite new (opened autumn 2014), and everyone who has heard of it really wants to go, so it was fun to finally try it out. Having lunch there is completely different from what you might be used to from other cafés, with eggs, pancakes and salads, but that is really the fun of it. It might sound a bit "unnecessary" at first, since you can eat cereal with milk at home any time, but I promise you: this café has a lot bigger selection than your cupboard.  

 Fra sekundet du går inn i kaféen, er du umiddelbart møtt med det enorme utvalg av frokostblandinger, ettersom de også fungere som pynt på veggene. De har hver frokostblandingtype som du kan forestille deg, som du kan mikse sammen, toppe med deilig toppings og så til slutt avslutte med litt melk, i den smaken du foretrekker. Hvis du ikke ønsker å velge alt dette selv (eller hvis du rett og slett ikke klarer å velge fra det brede utvalget), finnes det en meny på veggen med forskjellige "cocktails", som er frokostblandinger, toppings og melk-valg blandet sammen til en "cocktail". Vi endte opp med å velge en forskjellig cocktail hver, og de så alle helt fantastiske ut! Min ble en blanding av golden nuggets, marshmallow mateys og en Twinkie (!) toppet med normal helmelk, og i tillegg valgte jeg å toppe den opp med Oreos. Sprøeste frokostblandingen jeg noensinne har spist, men også den beste noensinne, og jeg har så lyst på en skål til akkurat nå.  From the second you enter the café, you are immediately met with the enormous selection of cereals, as they are also work as decorations on the walls. They have every cereal box that you can imagine, which you can mix together, top of with delicious toppings and then finally finish with some milk, in you preferable flavor. If you do not wish to choose all of this yourself (or if you simply cannot choose from the wide selection), there is a menu on the wall with different "cocktails", which are cereals, toppings and milk-selections mixed together for a "cocktail". We ended up choosing a different cocktail each, and they all looked delicious! Mine was a mix of golden nuggets, marshmallow mateys, a twinkie (!) and normal whole milk, and in addition I chose to top it up with some Oreos. Craziest cereal bowl I have ever eaten, but also the best ever, and I want to recreate one so much right now.

What: Cereal Killer Café

Where: Shoreditch - 139 Brick Lane, London E1 6SB

Price: £££££