Fleetmac Wood @ XOYO with Jukely

Last week I signed up to new music website Jukely. It's a gig subscription service where you pay £25 a month (or £45 if you'd like a +1 to each show) which allows you to grab passes to as many of their chosen gigs as you like. If , like me, you love finding new musical talent in London, then this is definitely for you! I'm one of these people that will hear one song I really like, check if the artist has any upcoming cheap gigs, and just buy 2 tickets and go. I've managed to see some great bands and artists in tiny venues (James Bay in a little church in Shepherds Bush last year was a highlight) before they get swallowed up by all the hype. When you sign up, you are given a free week to trial the service. Now coming to the end of my free week, and I've already made back the money I'll be paying monthly (I went for the £45 +1 option). The first free passes I chose were for Fleetmac Wood at XOYO.

Fleetmac Wood are a collection of DJ's who put on Mac parties around the UK and America (they were even at Glasto this year!) who only play Fleetwood Mac re-edits and originals. They fully encourage party-goers to dress up, with even their DJ's displaying amazing costumes. Tickets for this gig were priced at £10 in advance (plus booking fee), or £15 on the door. That's already half of my monthly bill in this one pass during my free week! 

When we arrived we were a little disappointed as there were only around 5 people in the bar. Fleetwood Mac tunes could clearly be heard, so we knew we were in the right place. It just turned out we were on the wrong floor...

We were dancing as soon as we entered the main room! The music was amazing (obviously!), with all the classic (and some not so) Mac songs we all love, but with bigger, funkier beats and twists so you feel like you're hearing them all for the first time again. The night didn't just feature DJs, there was also a dancer on stage for a few songs, and music videos being projected onto a big wall. 

For any Fleetwood Mac lovers out there, I really would recommend getting yourself to one of Fleetmac Wood's events.

I would also recommend checking out Jukely. Click any of my links to the site to not only get a week free, but also £10 off your first month. YOU'RE WELCOME!

Speedboat Time with London RIB Voyages - The Ultimate London Adventure!

A few weeks ago I was contacted by Mike from London RIB Voyages (big thanks to Leanne for passing on my deets!) who invited me to climb aboard one of their speedboat experiences. I chose 'The one that started it all', The Ultimate London Adventure. A date was arranged and off to Waterloo me and Amy went. I was a little bit nervous as I'm not usually one for speed, so we grabbed a cheeky beer beforehand. The meeting point for the boat ride was easy enough to find; right next to the London Eye. We were greeted by the team and given coats and life jackets to wear.

After the excitement of getting to play dress-up (these coats were soooo fleecey and warm inside) it was time to climb aboard the bright red speedboat. Lucky us managed to score front row seats!

We were welcomed on board by our tour guide for the evenings trip, the wonderfully friendly funny-lady Stacey. She gave us the lowdown of what we could expect during this 50 minute experience. We started at The London Eye and traveled East, bobbing past the Modern Tate at a reasonable speed. Our ears were treated to some fun pop songs, perfect to sing along to. Once we passed underneath Tower Bridge (my favourite London landmark!) it was full steam ahead!

I needn't have been nervous. Yes, it did go very very fast (it made my eyes water, hence the sunnies), but I felt extremely safe, and IT WAS SO MUCH FUN!! The captain was steering us left and right, the speakers were pumping out Bon Jovi and the James Bond Theme, and we got to wave at the loser boats going at super slow speeds. You get a teeny tiny bit of river spray to the face, but it's quite refreshing. I would advise keeping your bag on your lap, as our boat had a little puddle form on the base, which spread itself across the floor following the boats zig-zag pattern down the river.

After a swift u-turn, it was back towards Tower Bridge, and back to the restricted speed. This part of the tour was the 'guide' part. It sounds boring, but it was far from! Stacey was so engaging, telling us amusing and weird facts about all the popular landmarks on either side of the river. She even invited us all over to her flat on the top floor, for a beautiful view of London, tea and hobnobs (if anyone knows where I can find Stacey to make arrangements, please let me know...).

If you're looking for something fun and different to do in London, I highly recommend this Ultimate London Adventure experience. You could also give their other experiences a go. Break The Barrier looks especially exciting!

*I was invited to try out London RIB Voyages for free, but rest assured, all views are my own (and honest) :)

Marianne (Wedding Outfit of the Day)

Last weekend I headed up to Coventry for my cousins wedding. All week I had been trying to figure out what to wear. I knew my choice of shoes, but it was just deciding what else. Do I go for a dress, or maybe a skirt and blouse, or should I go for trousers...? Even when I packed my case, I had a few options in there! I almost went for my mustard dress (you can see it in this post), but turns out I actually forgot to pack it - DUH! So, here's what I eventually settled on.

Blazer and Trousers - H&M // Top - Clothes Swap from blogger ReeRee Rockette (originally from Warehouse) // Shoes - Orla Kiely for Clarks // Bag - New Look (through ASOS)

Right, first thing's first, the shoes. THE SHOES!! I picked these beauties up at a sale in my local Clarks. They are from Oral Kiely's range from S/S14. Originally priced at £100, I got them for £50 - what an absolute bargain!! They look a lot higher than they feel due to the platform under the toes. As they're from Clarks, you can just imagine how comfy they are. I was up dancing in them all night long.

The lovely ReeRee Rockette from Rockalily Cuts had featured this top on a recent blog post about clearing out her wardrobe. I'd told her not to throw it away, and that I would buy it because it was just too cute not to! ReeRee instead agreed to send me the top for free in return that I send her something back (which I'll be doing this week, promise!). I think it was more than a cowinkydink that this top, which matches my shoes prefectly, should arrive the day before the wedding. I completed the look with this chic black suit from H&M. I'd actually bought the jacket 2/3 years before buying the trousers. I like how the suit really brings out the little black buckle detail of the shoes. It also helps break down all the mustard.

Who else loves finding cute little wedding favours on the tables? We were spoilt with party poppers, bubbles, glittery butterflies, cute sweets, disposable cameras and even a little quiz game to play whilst we waited for the band to set up. There was also a table set up with picAmix sweets, including white chocolate mice and sherbert filled spaceships!

Not only was the wedding cake gluten free, but all the guests got a little surprise when it came to the newly weds cutting the cake. It was rainbow inside!! I can also confirm it was absolutely delicious. So with bellies full of sweets and rainbow cake, it was time for the band to start playing, and the happy couple to hit the dance floor.

A massive congrats to my cousin and his lovely new bride!!

Anyone else going to any summer weddings this year? This was my second, and I've got another in August, plus my besties blessing next month! This means more outfit planning...

Field Day 2015 - Outfit of the Day!

Festival season is definitely upon us, and it all started last weekend with Field Day hitting up Victoria Park in East London. I'd bought my tickets quite a while ago, so was finally looking forward to seeing some of my new favourite performers, as well as catching some of the freshest acts. My friend Amy who is always up for accompanying me to random gigs in London, didn't take much convincing to join me to this extravaganza. The weather was set to be a scorcher, so it was funky shorts and pretty tops at the ready!!

Vintage shorts - Rokit // Top - SwapAholicsUK Clothing swap // Sunnies - Primark // Frilly socks - New Look // Converse trainers - Beyond Retro

These vintage daisy print denim shorts are my go-to for big summer gigs/festivals. You may remember them from McBusted last year. I decided to make the most of the sun with this super bright and colourful summery top which I picked up from a Swapaholics clothing swap quite a while ago. I love it as it can be worn as a normal top, or you can sass it up a bit by wearing it off the shoulders. It really fits in with the big 70's trend at the moment too! I couldn't go to a festival and not wear some Converse. This time I opted for this vibrant green pair, worn with some green frilly socks. My outfit was completed with a cute red ribbon in my slightly to the side ponytail, and funky green sunglasses.

Field Day is more than just about the music. There's also plenty to eat and drink, with a lot of the stalls over from Street Feast (remember all the food I ate?!), and they even had a Village Green where there were lots of fun summer fete style games, including a tug-of-war and a blind folded piggy back race!

One of the main bands we were excited to see play that day were on at 2pm. We had just about enough time to grab a drink before we headed to the main stage to see Spector.

Me and Amy (thanks to me!) are big fans of Spector. We'd already seen them play the 100 Club back in April, and have even seen them again since Field Day!! Being one of the first bands on the main stage at a festival can be tough, but Spector smashed it and certainly set us up for the rest of the day.

Having now gotten ourselves all full of energy, it was time to scope out some new music.

First up was Yossarian whose lead singer enticed us in with his wonderfully low toned voice. Amy took quite a liking to him also and was spotted giving him a cheeky wink ;) I'd managed to give all of the artists playing a quick listen before the festival, so had a mental list of who I quite liked the sound of. Owen Pallett was one of these people. We arrived halfway through his set and the tent was jam packed! I really love how he mixes the violin with the synths. It was such a different sound, and I'll definitely be looking out for any future gigs in London.

We had some spare time before seeing LA Priest, so quickly grabbed some food and had a look around the other stalls.

 I had THE most amazing sweet potato falafel - it was to DIE for! I also picked up some sweet treats from a cute little cake sale. It was whilst I was buying these chocolatey delights that I spotted super blogger Olivia Emily. We'd both commented on each others blogs quite recently, so I hoped it wouldn't be too weird if I went over to say hello. It wasn't! She was absolutely lovely (and looked stunning, as usual), and we managed to take a quick pic together. Having stuffed our faces, we headed to the Shacklewell Arms tent to catch the end of LA Priest, who was just finishing up a funky techno set that had everyone bopping along.

From here we had a quick toilet break before dashing to stake our place in time for Tune-Yards.

I'd seen Tune-Yards a few years ago, so I knew they would be a lot of fun, which they were! We actually bumped into singer Merrill earlier in the day, so we got the chance to tell her how awesome she is. Next up was Jack Garratt, who I've seen quite a few times, and only the week before. I was quite disappointed that he only played 4 songs as I could literally sit and watch him all day. He's bloody amazing! His shorter set meant we didn't miss much of Django Django, who I had been wanting to see live  for quite some time. These guys were back outside at the main stage, so we got to enjoy the last of the sunshine whilst dancing along in the big crowd that had gathered.

One last toilet break, and it was time for FKA Twigs.

Yet another artist I had had the chance to see earlier this year, this time, however, I could actually see FKA Twigs a bit more from where I was standing! There is quite a lot of hype surrounding this babe of a women, because she's weird and different, but in a really really good way. After her set we decided against seeing Caribou and instead caught Sylvan Esso. We got there just in time for the one song I actually knew really well, so we finished Field Day with a boogie.

We didn't quite feel like going straight home, so headed to a pub for a quick one.

We got chatting to a group of friends who had also just been to Field Day, and who very kindly shared some of their prosecco with us. It turns out one of them was quite a whiz with a camera, so when he spotted mine, he just had to have a go. He managed to get some very sweet photos of Me and Amy. Wouldn't we just make the cutest couple? But, alas, neither of us are that way inclined.

Who else has started their festival season with a bang? Did anyone else make it to Field Day? I'd love to hear about what you got up to!

Thanks for reading :)