Dear Santa....

....I saw the red version of this watch on dressed and pressed's blog this morning and realised I had to have it. I usually avoid wearing my watch because I like to wear bracelets and it interfers. But this watch is a beautiful bracelet as well! And its by Betsey Johnson and we all know how I feel about her....

And look at the cutesy presentation case?!

The only question now is whether I get it in black, blue, or red. That, dearest santa, is up to you!

I've been a very good girl and eaten all of my greens, and this week i found out i'd passed my beloved MA with flying colours, so I think I deserve to be on the nice list and not the naughty one like last year.

And of course there'll be mince pies, and I won't forget the carrot for rudolph!

Lots of love and kisses,

Tor

PS - Santa, in case your elves don't make watches in the workshop, you can buy them here. And if you're feeling especially generous, I also like the fringed T bar sandals!

Topshop! Again!

Guess where i'm going on the 8th December...

Eeeny, meeeny, miiiny, mo.....

....For which coat shall I go??

I saw this coat in both a magazine, and on a real woman on the train the other day, and I fell in love with it:

I immediately hinted heavily to my boyfriend how wonderful it was, and what a lovely christmas present it would make. He didn't

A change is better than a rest!

I'm not one for whinging, but to cut a long story short, things haven't been all hunky dory (a phrase not used enough I don't think!) in Tor World of late. Yesterday I moved from my grotty horrible room in a grotty horrible flat full of grotty horrible people (you get the idea!) and into my sisters spare room. Living with my sister will be a true delight, however this maneovure technically makes me homeless! Believe it or not I did this of my own accord: such was the grottiness of the flat! However fear not, because I am a young lady with a plan: once Christmas is out of the way I shall be flat hunting for a beautiful home all of my very own. And to keep my spirits up in the meantime, I am dreaming of all the beautiful things I want to put in it.

First up are some robert ryan tiles. In my head (where i'm much better at crafts than I am in real life) I would use just one (they're quite expensive!) surrounded by plain blue and brown tiles as the centre piece of a cutsey kitchen table where I will sullenly eat my cornflakes every morning until it catches my eye and makes me smile. My tile of choice is this one:

If i'm allowed to be greedy (and why not, when you're feeling a bit down and making lists of fictional things you really want for your fictional home) I would also have this rob ryan screenprint:

How cutsey? I truly believe this man is genius; each of his prints is touching, and each carries a message that seems so simple but so true.


I don't believe in minimalism. I think a home should be cluttered with trinkets and things you can forget about and then get excited when you accidentally stumble across them: my attitude to my home is the same as my attitude to my wardrobe I guess!

So here are the new trinkets I will be adding to my already vast collection:

When I was a wee girl of 18, I brought an ex boyfriend the best present from an antique shop near my parents house: a set of babooshka dolls each representing one of the russian presidents since the fall of the last tsar (part animal part caractiture, if you're interested!). Oh how I wish i'd kept them for myself! However I think this set of hideous yet strangely appealing cat dolls would more than make up for it! Speaking of Russian dolls did anyone else see how fab the dolls created by Burberry for Russian Vogue were? I think they're still on the website!

2 Christmases ago my mum and dad brought me the most amazing gift; a hand crafted chess set from the sixties in a beautiful wooden box. Each set are carved to represent the chinese and invading armys (in blue and in yellow) and what i love most about it is because it has been hand carved and hand painted, each piece is different. However, this set didnt come with a board; I always said I wooden cheapen them with a plastic board, and I haven't found the perfect one. Until now: this is shabby yet distinguished all at the same time. Like a battle weavied old man who won't talk about what he's been through; I love it.

And finally, the thing i'm most excited about. I had this idea once that I wanted a footstool. An old-fashioned footstool which I could restore and make my own. I wanted to strip the wood and paint it turquoise and then replace the fabric with robot print fabric. I don't know why; I just conjured this impractical idea up on the tube one day and now I plan on turning into reality. After literally hours of scouring for it, here is the robot print fabric:

Although i'm also quite fond of the spaceships now that I think about it:

Hmmm, robots or spaceships? Robots or spaceships? It's a touch call, but one i'm happy to distract myself with making!


Sorry for the trip into home decorating guys: Back with more fashion and frivolity and less interior nightmares tomorrow, I promise!

Love Tor x

Minna Parikka: Love of the day....

Although I own literally hundreds of pairs of shoes, i've recently realised that my shoes fall into one of two categories: gorgeous horrendously high heels, or cute but fundementally practical flats.

On Wednesday, whilst tearing up and down Oxford street with my sister (wearing shoes from category a: high and uncomfortable) I twisted my ankle. And it really hurts.

Whilst sitting here wearing my heeled boots and twisting my foot around (does anyone else kind of enjoy the perverse pleasure of controlling their pain in this way??!) I have had a moment of realisation: what I need are shoes that are flat, or nearly flat, and gorgeous. No to high heels, and no to plain black ballet pumps! This means no to more high street "everyone has a pair of shoes like those" purchases; what my heart desires today is a pair of shoes by Minna Parikka.

A lady who, a quick myspace stalk shows, looks as cool as her footwear:

Here's the blurb: "Finnish designer Minna Parikka’s shoes always cause gasps of delight and compliments galore. Combining her love of Nordic functionalism and the surreal, Minna creates designs that pay tribute to the footwear of eras past. Made in Spain of the finest Italian leathers, you'll fall in love with her signature style of bows, gingerbread shapes, hearts and buckles." Sounds like the kind of shoes i'm looking for "gasps of delight" are always welcomed by this meglomaniac! But more important than the words, here are the shoes:

* OK so the last two pairs don't satisfy the flat/nearly flat criteria, but a leopard cant change her spots that quickly can she??

The first pair are my absolute favourites: they are the kind of shoes I imagine minnie mouse would wear if mickey ever sent her out to work and she had to get an office job. They'd be the perfect focal point with black tights and black shoes (my standard work outfit) but would look outstanding with clashing coloured tights, patterned dresses and layers and layers of tops (my standard weekend uniform) Basically, I need these shoes! Time to start jiggling that piggie bank....

Thank heavens for the tatty devine website. Without them I might never have discovered the fabulous Minna, and her fabulous, delicious, drool inducing shoe candy.

Have a great weekend everyone.

Tor xxx