How to Wear a Denim Mini Skirt: Topshop's £20 Circle Skirt Dupe

Denim mini skirts of varying kinds have seen me through more summers (and winters, come to that) than I care to remember, from 2001's "rebellious" search for the shortest I could possibly dredge up to 2009's quest for the perfect rara. I thought I'd now consigned them to the realms of nostalgia... until I came across this dead ringer for American Apparel's circle skirt in Topshop. With a £20 gift card burning a hole in my pocket, and little prior hope of finding anything I wanted at such a price, there was more than a little excitement!

The bleached effect, skater cut and high-waist are oh-so-'90s, which, ironically, gives it a bang-up-to-date feel (and if you are going to go for it, you couldn't find a more flattering shape). It has a (*cringe*) elasticated waist, but once it's on, you'd never know - in fact, it's the most genius way of ensuring a perfect fit! So you can keep your "ironic" denim pencil skirts and A-line midis (well, until I find one under £20) - I'm all about embracing my inner child (yes, again).

Do It Like A Lady

Skirt: Topshop (Available Here), Collar and Hair Band: Both New Look, Jumper and Socks: Both Primark, Shoes: Office 

A feminine, vintage-inspired take on "double denim" for cooler days!

Varsity Blues

Skirt: As Above, Top, Shoes and Socks: All Primark

Playing on the sporty-meets-preppy cheerleader vibe...

Sport Luxe Sweetheart

Skirt: As Above, Top: New Look, Trainers: Primark

Both already featured favourites, the tough-vs-girly combination of the top's mesh and sweetheart neckline detail, and the trainers' studs and rhinestones, meshes perfectly with the personality of the skirt.

Pile-Up

Skirt, Trainers and Mesh-Sleeved Top: As Above, Cartoon Print Top: Primark

Skirt, Trainers and Mesh-Sleeved Top: As Above, Mint Knit: Tokyo Doll at New Look

Aaand the other great thing about long-sleeved crop tops... layerability! Perfect for giving a sporty edge, an extra layer of insulation (I know, the last thing we need in the UK at the moment, for once!) and/or a bit of coverage for the arm-shy.

Glo-Girl

Skirt and Trainers: As Above, Top and Bra: Both Primark, Beanie and Bracelet c/o New Look

In the interests of a full exploration of all facets of the skirt's character, I had to go a bit nu-rave '90s, with neon accents (and why not use colour pop lingerie as a fashion accessory?) balanced by a relaxed white tee (and, yes, those trainers again - sue me).

Are you doing denim this season?

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Primark SS13: My Top Picks

I'm not quite sure why it's taken me so long to get around to this post, when I'm 99.9% sure that I source a larger proportion of my wardrobe contents from Primark than any other fashion blogger, and, way before I even thought about blogging, I signed up to PR programs purely for the purposes of feverishly checking for new Primark drops (weekly, if not daily).

I'm as excited as ever by the new collection - in my opinion it's a great mixture of girly vs sporty, romantic vs fierce, and '50s inspired loveliness vs '80s inspired madness, featuring a new spin on some old and new "classics" such as the biker jacket, peplum top and wedge hi-top.

So, without further ado, here are my top clothing and accessory picks for SS13 from those released so far (including a few gems you might not have seen on other blogs or in the lookbook). They're trickling into stores gradually - some snuck in as early as December, whilst you'll have to wait until March to get a glimpse of others...

 

The Clothes

Yellow Polka Dot Dress

An irresistibly cute, demure '50s style updated with a foot or two lopped off the hemline and a cheeky keyhole - love the cut, collar, colours, everything!

China Print Dress

Cap sleeves, lantern shaping, neckline notching and piping combine with porcelain print to make this the perfect summer dress.

Cut-Out Dress

You may have noticed by now that I'm a sucker for a cut-out, and this style makes a nice change from the typical side-waist versions we're used to by now. I love the circle skirt and sweetheart neckline - like the first two, it's a cute contemporary take on a classic '50s style.

Cat Print T-Shirt

I have wanted one of these for so long! Have actually been considering having my own cat's picture put on a T-shirt... may have to after all, as my mum apparently finds this one scary!

Dungarees

Well, I'll try anything once! Even though mum keeps telling me how much these remind her of her favourite maternity outfit (in 1985). They look fun.

Floral Tapestry Print Biker Jacket and Skirt

Loving the combination of tapestry/carpet print and contemporary styling - this would make a ridiculously cute suit, but the jacket would also look great with skater/circle styles, or shorts.

Cream Lace Midi Dress

I actually already have this (coming soon to an outfit post near you) and love, love, love it - due to my relatively large chest, even though I sized up, this comes up more empire line than waisted on me, but I actually quite like the Austen-a-like effect! It's lovely and floaty and romantic, and, much as I love a mini, I always find below-the-knee cuts so elegant. It's sheer, but comes with a mini removable slip, which is great, but I think I might get a bit more experimental with what I slip on underneath at some point - watch this space!

Net-Sleeved Peplum Top

I've happily owned up to my peplum addiction numerous times on here over the last few months, and this would be a perfect addition to my collection - loving the rock/lady clash.

Tube Maxi Skirt

Much as I love my swishy maxis, I definitely need this shape in my wardrobe ASAP. Sleek, slinky, and how perfect does it look with the top?

My Favourite Lookbook Looks

Love the dress and the net shorts, although I probably wouldn't style them together or turn this into such a sporty look!

Amazing shirt detailing, and love the colour and wash of the jeans - perfect as separates, or as a fun new way to do double denim...

Footwear and Accessories

1 (£18) & 2 (£15) - Now I've got my classic black and white wedge hi-tops sorted, it's time to branch out... tie-dye, studs, pastels... oooooh...
3 - The perfect vintage-look wear-with-anything cowboy boots. Need now.
4 - An ear cuff fit for a princess
5 - A diva-esque twist on the classic nude court (£12)
6 - A rocky spin on the classic ladylike box clutch
7 - An always-in-style lug-anything-anywhere fringed bag
8 - Owl wrist cuff - the thinking woman's arm candy
9 - Studs upon studs - perfect for rocking with the box clutch above!
10 - This entire mix and match multipack costs £2 - that's less than 17p per earring!

What do you think of the new collection? Will you be looking out for anything this season?

See my Primark High Summer 2013 highlights here

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How to Wear... Double Denim

...without looking like a member of B*Witched, circa 1998.

Rules of Thumb
How I Wear
Transitioning into Autumn/Winter

My main rules of thumb are:

#1 Don't match shades exactly (I usually prefer to have the lighter shade on top, which is best for keeping legs looking long and hips and thighs slim, but you can play around with this).

#2 Stick to no more than 2 denim garments at any one time.

#3 Keep one item fairly slouchy and the other more fitted - I usually team an unstructured denim shirt with a bodycon bottom half, but you could also try wide-legged jeans, slouchy shorts or an A-line skirt with a fitted shirt or denim bralet.

I'm sure there are some intriguing outfit possibilities out there that violate one or more of these rules, but if you stick to them you won't go too far wrong.

An all-purpose denim shirt is something no wardrobe should be without. I always used to think of them as too masculine and casual to fit my style, but eventually I succumbed, and was astounded by the number of new possibilities they opened up (as well as teaming with jeans and other denim items, they're invaluable for toughening up and toning down girly skirts and metallics).

Oh, and one more tip - I finally found my perfect denim shirt in Tammy (age 15 - er, I was only about 10 years older than that!) - a lot of kids' clothes are just tax-free copies of adult clothes now - age 16 is equivalent to about a UK 10, so if you're small enough, kids' departments are well worth a look!

Boilersuit Chic

Tucking the shirt in creates a kind of vintage-y denim playsuit/sexy boilersuit feel, and the looser fit of the top balances out the bodycon shorts and expanse of leg on show, keeping it casual but chic. Sky-high wedges add a bit of glamour.

Shirt: Tammy (Past Season)
Shorts: Jane Norman (Past Season)
Wedges: New Look (Past Season)

Floral

One answer to the eternal question (asked by women since the dawn of, er, May 2010) - "What the hell do I wear with floral jeans?" (more potential responses coming soon!). A buttoned-up shirt balances out their overt femininity for a more casual feel - choosing a lighter shade and leaving it loose helps to shrink hips and thighs too. Meanwhile, colour pop pumps pick up on the fun, girly aspect. Colour pop ankle boots would give the ensemble an autumnal twist.

Shirt: As Above
Jeans: Primark (Past Season)
Pumps: Primark (Past Season)

The Casual Cover-Up

Muted denim and khaki shades are a perfect base for a colourful, printed statement item, like these amazzzzing boots, maintaining a sleek, understated look which allows them to be the centre of attention. An unbuttoned shirt changes the proportions of a bodycon look to add interest and a hint of masculinity, which works well juxtaposed against very feminine or luxe items.

Shirt: As Above
Jeans: Miss Selfridge (Past Season)
Top: Topshop (SS12)
Boots: Primark (AW12)

Transitioning Into Autumn/Winter
Darker shades of denim, fortified with studs, spikes and other forms of embellishment, and mixed up with leather and chiffon, will fit neatly into this winter's rocker trend - I'm seeing black skinnies teamed with spiked platform ankle boots, and studded grey denim gilets and bralets. The more adventurous amongst us could also try layering a denim gilet over a leather jacket, or indeed a leather gilet over a denim jacket.

Tomorrow: How to Wear Pastels

See more recent posts featuring double denim here

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