Accessories: All in the Detail

Slightly different post today as I wanted to branch out a little and show something I always forget about, perhaps in a hope to remind myself to wear them more often: accessories! With a focus on the new, as all of these were Christmas presents from various friends and family members.
I’m not a big accessory kind of person in general, and this a theme I’ve returned to multiple times on the blog – I just tend to wear my same few jewellery pieces every single day including a watch, ring and necklace. But, to my great sadness, back in November when we went for a break in the Lake District with my parents, I lost my beloved dragonfly necklace that Ben had bought me for my 18th birthday, over 7 years ago, and which I had worn pretty much every day since. After slightly tearing apart the apartment we were staying in, I realised it was more than likely that it had got caught up in my giant blanket scarf from Joules while we were out walking and been pulled loose. I then swapped to wearing an old (but super cute!) fox necklace, which I’m now considering making into a brooch so it might get more wear. But for some days though, I ended up necklace-less (say that out loud, weird!) and didn’t like it at all. It did force me to swap around a few accessories though, such as the fox necklace among others, so it was probably a good exercise for me! Anywho, Ben decided to get me a replacement as a Christmas present, so more on that below.
I wanted to focus in on a few of these accessories today though as they don’t get as much love on the blog as they should!

On the left in the photo above are some super fun badges – technically these are “accessories” as such, or at least not in the way that they were back in the 00s when we pinned as many as we possibly could onto our schoolbags to look cool…And as such, I didn’t actually do that really because I wasn’t cool! But my plan is now to use these as “brooches” which sounds much more pin up and retro to me than badges! I’m thinking they’ll also make an awesome backdrop scattered in photos, all Instagram-like. Okay, so I may not have tried to be cool back in the 00s, but I’m all over it now!
On the right is another new necklace, as in, aside from the one I mentioned above (and will also mention below). I took part in 3 different Secret Santas over Christmas – my work one, a Vintage Secret Santa (which sadly hasn’t turned up yet!) and a Gemporia Secret Santa. With my budget, I spent forever searching the Gemporia site and making a giant shortlist (which wasn’t particularly helpful!) before settling on a couple of items for mine, then just as I broke up for Christmas from work, a little parcel arrived with this beautiful necklace inside thanks to Steph at Faiiint. I’m not sure if this is how this Secret Santa worked, or just how mine turned out, but it was actually her I was choosing for too! So big thank you Steph for choosing something very suited to me – it’s dainty, pretty and a similar colour to my birthstone (Sapphire). I believe it’s this one, but I could be wrong on that!

And above (and you’ll also need to refer to the top ‘orange’ image in this post too!), we’ve got a tiny purse from Thailand which actually came as part of a set of 4 from Ben’s aunt and uncle, all of them decorated with this beautiful shimmering embroidered design – my plan is to use these as coin purses, and to keep random stuff in my handbag in, because I have a lot of random stuff! Then there’s the super sleek Katie Loxton “One in a Million” clutch from my friend Fran – we always say she’s the best at present buying because she picks out the most perfect things, and I think this is proof of that! I’m useless with clutch bags when I need them as I can never find a nice one, but Fran’s absolutely hit the jackpot with this and I can’t wait to use it!
Then finally, the necklace from Ben. When he mentioned he would buy me a replacement necklace, we decided to look together at some because he knew it would be one I wear everyday, so we wanted to make sure I actually liked it. I wasn’t sure whether to go with another dragonfly, but in the end decided that unless it was the exact same one, I probably wouldn’t like it as much. We actually came across the Van Peterson 925 range at Debenhams watching a programme about Oxford Street which mentioned the designer and that he was offering a more affordable range there. I picked out a few I liked, and Ben made the final decision which turned out to be a rose gold leaf that’s just big enough to stand out, but still dainty enough for my tastes. I’ve been wearing it everyday since, and hopefully it’ll last at least another 7 years!
And just a quick final image, want to see my new lighting set up?! After struggling with the winter light and blog photos for several years, Ben decided to get me some photography lights for Christmas, and I’m  in love! I’m still learning how best to use them for pictures of people, but they’ve made such a difference to “product shots” like this – it’s crazy!