Working Weekends.

I have been in full time employment for 6 years. For 5 of those, I've worked Monday to Friday (albeit not 9-5, that would be a total dream. More like 7-4 or 6-3 or overnight or....... The glamorous life of a Visual Merchandiser). I love my weekends. I love being able to wake up of my own accord on Saturdays and Sundays and think, should I spend my day at a museum/gallery/park/market? If so, which one?! Or, should I just stay in bed watching Netflix and drinking tea. I like to be able to make that choice.

The only time I enjoy working weekends is when I get a call much like the following..."Elouise, what's your availability for next weekend? You're needed in our *insert new city here* store."

This is exactly what happened a couple of weeks ago when I got to work in our Nuremberg store. I've been to Germany a fair few times, I love Berlin and have friends there which always makes visiting fun, I've gone on day trips to the Christmas market in Aachen a few times which just adds to the magical feeling of my favourite season and I did a store opening in Munich which wasn't my favourite place I've visited (read: I didn't enjoy it there at all!) but a pal who moved there is very determined to change my mind with a return visit.

However, back to Nuremberg. I totally loved it there! This was largely due to fantastic weather and working late shifts which meant we were able to have a wonder round the city during the day. I rarity while working away.

There were churches everywhere. And they were huge! You literally couldn't walk down a street without a vast, Gothic piece of architecture looming. The city is also all within castle walls which gave the city an almost toy town feel. The castle itself is at the top of the hill and you can wonder round the grounds. The castle isn't like English castles, ruins amid plush greenery. Think Game of Thrones. I was in my element. The proportions of the castle were crazy, huge doors, tiny windows. This all added to the feeling that you weren't in a real place, more like walking round a film set.

All in all, a wonderful weekend spent exploring a new city. Definitely somewhere I want to return to.

By Elouise Wolf

Long Weekends.

I was mega happy to see the back of last year. It was, quite frankly, shit. 2015 was going to be my year, it was going to be excellent. And then February came with the news of possible redundancy and the fact that my house was being knocked down. Both these pieces of news came in the same week, thanks for that world!

Anyway, happy to say that things have turned out for the better. I kept my job which was a huge weight off my shoulders and my housemates and I found the most beautiful flat that I never want to leave. So while everything turned out ok, it was a very testing couple of months. Luckily, everything was sorted before my long weekend in Copenhagen over the Easter weekend, I used this as an excuse to celebrate.

I absolutely love Copenhagen. I nearly moved there a few years ago for work but it fell through due to not being able to find anywhere to live. It's been 2 years since I've been! Time flies. 

It was a total perfect weekend of just walking, drinking coffee, drinking a lot of beer (a whole lot!), catching up with some very dear friends, lying on the harbour, photographs, dancing in Jolene  in the meat packing district until the small hours of the morning and eating the most delicious pizza. I gave it up for Lent, words can't describe how happy I was.

In Copenhagen, like a lot of similar cities, nothing opens on a Sunday and I mean nothing! So don't go thinking you'll have a full weekend of shopping or anything like that. Be prepared for a lot of walking. The city is pretty much flat though and so beautiful that you'll soon forget that everything is closed due to the amount of photography opportunities you'll have.

Have you been on any good trips recently?

Resolutions.

So a couple of weeks ago, I wrote about it being the New Year and resolutions and such. This year, I am pretty determined to make them last and I am happy to say that today I ran the Cancer Research Winter 10k. Now, I'm not going to lie, getting there was difficult. First, my running partner bailed on me last night. Then, when my alarm went off at 7am this morning, the weather sounded absolutely horrific but that might have something to do with the fact my room only has single glazing, it always sounds worse than it is.

After the major obstacles of the morning (breakfast, getting dressed, etc. It was 7am on a Sunday, HUGE obstacles) my housemate and I trotted along into Central. We said our goodbyes as my housemate had come for moral support and I made my way to the starting line. We had a mandatory warm up which was very awkward as a lot of the warm ups were to be done with a partner and I was alone. And then things got emotional. The guy leading the warm up asked everyone to put up their hand if they knew someone who had been affected by cancer. Pretty much everyone, and I mean everyone, put up their hand. Then he asked people to keep their hands up if they had been affected themselves by cancer. Hands went down but a lot remained. Then, he asked for people to keep their hands up if they were still undergoing treatment for cancer. I wasn't really prepared for how many hands stayed up and needless to say I pretty much lost it. It then hit me, my obstacles of the morning were nothing compared to those of the brave people I was surrounded by.

I'd love to say the run was a total breeze but if I'm being honest, I definitely didn't train enough for it. It was a really fun course with snow areas and passing major monuments of London. The polar bears which high-fived you as you ran were also a massive help. Cheers pals. At this very moment, I don't know my time but as I was running, my time went out the window and I just wanted to be able to run the whole way, supporting a truly amazing cause. And yes, I did run the whole thing.

You can still donate to Cancer Research by clicking here

(Quite possibly the most horrific photo of me ever but look how happy I am that I've finished! And yes, that is a Double Decker in my hand that Holly pretty much threw at me as I crossed the finish line, best housemate ever!)

The Naked Palette.

I am literally the worst person ever when it comes to make up. After spending years having to apply it with a trowel for dance shows, I feel I look either too natural (read: bare faced) or in drag. There's no happy medium. I've also worn pretty much the same make up since I was about 14, black eye-liner, mascara and the palest powder going. (When I was about 16 I started to experiment with red eye shadow. I thought I looked super cool until a friend from college asked if I'd developed a crack habit over the summer holidays. I still have the offending eye shadow but it's now saved for Halloween and Halloween only!)

Then for Christmas last year, my dear uncle bought me a gift that has changed my make up bag for the better!

The Naked Palette from Urban Decay has become something I can't live without. 12 gorgeous shades going from a nude to a glittery black, there's something for everyone in this palette. There's also a difference in finishes with matte, shimmer and glitter shadows. It's safe to say I've fallen in love with it. For during the day, putting one of the nudes on before my eye-liner just makes me feel a lot more 'done.' And with the fantastic brush that comes with it, creating a superb smokey eye for an evening out is easy as pie.

I still may not be a make up master, but with this palette, as least I can fake it.

GUY BOURDIN: IMAGE MAKER

Had a perfect London afternoon yesterday and was treated by the beautiful Rachel to spend a couple of hours at the Guy Bourdin exhibition at Somerset House.

Guy Bourdin: Image Maker is a collection of over 100 photographs spanning a photography career of over 40 years. Included was the "Walking Legs" series which is a campaign commissioned by Charles Jourdan that has never been shown in it's entirety. Accompanying the series was an unseen fashion film of his road-trip around the UK in 1979.

The exhibition was amazing and I'm always drawn to people's work that is the total opposite of what I do. All photography work I have ever done is black and white and usually quite natural shots. I loved the use of colour throughout Bourdin's work and the whole staged and theatrical feel of it all. It's the same reason I love the work of David LaChapelle and Tim Walker.

Throughout the exhibition, there were a few films being shown including a room with 4 screens set up to make you feel truly immersed in the footage. Paintings and rough sketches were also included throughout and anyone who knows me will appreciate how excited I got at the polaroid series (I did a project of my own in uni called "The Polaroid Project").

We also popped in to "Chris Stein/Negative: Me, Blondie, and The Advent of Punk" which was incredible. There were some amazing photographs with some excellent stories and explanations attached but going on a Saturday lunchtime probably wasn't the best time for this one. I wanted to read everything but being so busy, I felt like I was constantly in the way. I will definitely be heading back for this one but may think a bit more carefully about what time I head down.

As always, a outfit snap was a must. Especially when you have THE BEST BACKGROUND EVER!

(Leather Jacket - Schott, Duster Coat - Urban Outfitters, T-Shirt - an old The Cure one I bought when I saw them in 2004, Jeans - Topshop, Boots - Office, Bag - Topshop)

Guy Bourdin: Image Maker is on until 15th March 2015 - entrance fee £9.00

Chris Stein/Negative: Me, Blondie, and The Advent of Punk is on until 25th January 2015 - free

New Year.

So 2015 is upon us, something which makes me incredibly happy. 2014 wasn't the best for a number of reasons and come December, I was counting down the days for the year to be over. I really don't like wishing time away.

Like most people, I have been thinking about resolutions and what I want to achieve/experience this year. While this is nothing new, I feel like I've literally hit the ground running.

G E T  F I T - when I lived in Leeds, I was at the gym around 4 times a week. I loved it. Since moving to London, I've indulged too much in my other love. Pizza. It doesn't help that to move gyms, my membership would increase to £125 per month! So I thought, I can sit around eating pizza or I can get moving. I've since signed up to do a 10K in a couple of weeks and the Hackney Half in May. Fingers crossed I'll complete it this time in under 2 hours!

T R A V E L - To be fair, I don't do too badly for travelling but I feel there is always room for improvement. I have flights booked for the Easter weekend to visit friends in Copenhagen and then possible trips to Vienna and Berlin and that's before a summer holiday and anything work throws my way!

E X P E R I E N C E - Again, not doing too badly with this one. I have tickets for 4 pretty big gigs coming up, an evening at the theatre booked and plans in motion for a festival in the summer. I feel like this is the easiest one as I do a lot in my spare time but sometimes, it feels a bit same old same old. I'm going to make a point of looking for events that are happening in places I wouldn't usually venture too and make sure I take full advantage of everything London has to offer, especially in the summer.

B E  H A P P Y - I feel like this one is massively generic but a lot of last year I was doing things that I felt I should be doing rather than doing things because I wanted to. This will not be happening anymore. If I don't like something or it doesn't do it for me, it can do one.

B L O G - This is the only one I feel I have been slacking on so far. Seeing as it's already the 14th and I'm writing a new year blog post. Ooops. I WILL BE MORE 'ON IT' THIS YEAR. I promise.

What are your new year resolutions and aims?

URBAN OUTFITTERS S/S15 PRESS DAY

One of the best things about being involved in the fashion industry are press days. Getting to see the things for the new season before anyone else. Seeing what the trends are going be and knowing how to wear the new styles. The only thing better than being the first ones to see it is being the person who creates it. And that's exactly what I did with a team of other VM's and display boys last week.

We took over the wonderful space that is The Vinyl Factory in Soho and it was actually really insightful to see how a press day gets put together. There was nothing, and I mean nothing, in the space when we entered and after a very long day of hard work it was pretty amazing to see what we had created.

(Superb mannequins by our styling team. Sports lux isn't going anywhere!)

Even though I love the layering of winter style, I was mega excited to see everything stripped right back for S/S15. Think super clean lines in monochrome or neutral tones with the odd bit of sparkle thrown in for good measure.

(I have a feeling these white, wide leg, cropped trousers by Solace will be finding a new home in my wardrobe.)

(This dress by Vinti Andrews was one of my favourite pieces. It would look brilliant over skinnies or for the very brave, a big pair knickers.)

Menswear was super strong with new brands like Calvin Klein and Champion sitting alongside favourites such as Libertine Libertine, Wood Wood, Blood Brother and Farah. Like womenswear, a few of the brands had a really chilled out muted vibe which was strongly juxtaposed against the sportier brands that screamed 90's.

Housewares still had a strong Native American vibe running through it with amazing printed textiles, skulls and dream catchers galore. And something that pleased me greatly was the inclusion of well being tea. I'm literally anyone's for a good brew.

Like I said earlier, I love winter fashion. Layering up and good knitwear pleases me greatly. However, after setting everything up for S/S15, I'm really looking forward to the new season. I have a feeling my bank balance won't agree with me so much though.

Tattoos and Rude Boys

Awful weather meant a Sunday of  indoor based activities. First on the list, brunch at Jackson and Rye. Very nearly didn't make it thanks to the bus making me get off in Lambeth North with the bus driver telling me 'London is closed.' Ah right, thanks for that.

Amazing food (scrambled eggs, smoked salmon, toast and southern fried potatoes) and great coffee with a cheeky peach bellini thrown in for good measure. It's not often I eat before lunchtime so when I do I like to make sure I'm doing it right. Great service and reasonable prices means I'll definitely be back to work my way through the menu. A gentleman at the next table had pancakes which looked delicious.

Luckily, the rain had stopped so a wonder to Somerset House ensued. One of my favourite things about walking around London is when you find a place you've never been to before. Walking along the river, we found this little park full of amazing flowers and very friendly drunk men. Took a quick opportunity to get an outfit snap which was a little harder than I thought it would be due to the strong winds and nearly loosing my hat on more than one occasion!

(Hat - Urban Outfitters, Jumper - Cos, Skirt - American Apparel, Boots - Topshop, Bag - Mulberry)

 I'd been wanting to go to Somerset House for a while as I've yet to see a bad exhibition there but was highly recommended Time: Tattoo Art Today. While there, we heard a few grumbles as I think some people were slightly disappointed there wasn't more flash. I think the moment people hear of something by tattooists, flash is the automatic thing that comes to mind. I really loved the diversity in the work that was on display and it's always nice to see tattooists I love (Hooper, Koeplinger, Binnie, Garver etc) doing something a little different and to see them for the artists they are.

Another exhibition that was also on was Return of The Rudeboy. The exhibition took up a few rooms with a slightly different theme in each one. The photography was great but I was really impressed with the way the work was displayed and other elements of Rudeboy culture, such as music and fashion, that were featured in each room. It wasn't the biggest exhibition but I felt everything was incredibly relevant and as someone who didn't really know anything about the history of Rudeboys, I felt that I learnt quite a lot about a really interesting subculture. All in all, a wonderful day.

Time: Tattoo Art Today is on until 5th October 2014

Return of The Rudeboy is on until 25th August 2014

Both exhibitions at Somerset House are free of charge.