Working my winter look

In the last month or so I've become practically inseparable from the following 3 items:

1. My teal vintage turban.

2. My mother's Brown mini-trench with black faux-fur cuffs and collar from the '80's

3. My studded leather fingerless gloves.

On their own they are fantastic. Together they're an unbeatable team - my winter armour against the cold weather and cold world.

Peace out xx

W.W.M.D

For those of you who missed Glee last night, WWMD stands for What Would Madonna Do and is officially my new favourite acronym (I never really got the whole lol thing anyway). Without wanting to bang on about it too much, Glee's Madonna episode was pure genius, and without a shadow of a doubt the best so far. And also, was it only me kicking myself when I found out that she's Sue Sylvester’s ultimate idol? I mean, the clues have been there all along!

To be honest I’ve always been more of an MJ girl, but since Celebration found its way onto my ipod sometime before Christmas, I’ve been more than a little obsessed with Madge, and in true Sisi G style have been channelling this obsession through my wardrobe; lace gloves, hair bows, ripped tights, general slutiness. I know it’s total cheese on toast, but there really is something empowering about her – she’s a true icon, and inspiration. In the words of the great woman herself - Express yourself.

p.s. MASSIVE thank you to Anna D for the photoshop help as I am a total loser, and don't have a clue how to use it!

Two weeks in Zambia

Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls, friend and foes, I’m back….and couldn’t be less pleased. The weathers dreadful, work is in a pre-LFW spin, and I’m exhausted! Zambia on the other hand was phenomenal – right up there on my best holiday ever list with Disney when I was 6; the weather, the food, the scenery – all totally gorgeous. Here’s some pictures of things which caught my eye, inspired me, or I just wanted to share with you ….enjoy!

Me and Nell blinging it up at the Vic Falls


My 25 juicy mango’s which cost 5000 kwacha (approx. 60p)!


My new fave beer, and Zambia’s best!


Me attempting to pound nuts in the village


Nell and the seriously cute village kids - we were both tempted to do an Angelina!


Perfect birthday morning – Peanut butter on toast, AA Gill, oh, and a deserted tropical Island virtually to myself!


Church on Sunday in the village. Me with my little mate rocking a chitenge (the material) like a local….except they don’t match their with harem’s and a sequined T!


Nellie nearly died when she saw this. She is not proud that her country manufactures pvc shoes….!


New clothes in the market…


2nd hand clothes in the market


The make do and mend spirit is still alive and well here….gives us something to think about. There aren’t really many places to by new clothes and shoes, so lots of people by 2nd hand. Love the fact you can get a burger while your shoes are fixed…now that’s what I call multi-tasking


The walk to work….i’ll never complain about the 38 bus again, promise…


Women in the market. I thought people just wore their chitenge on their bottom half, but they in fact wear them over the top of skirts. Also, they’re always paired with random western tops, which i always found disappointing!


Thought these soap powders looked like Warhol! I wanted to buy the whole display and recreate it in my living room….not sure Dalston housemates would have appreciated…


I became a bit obsessed with the hand painted shop signs. If I ever open a boutique I’m going to have a hand painted sign Zambian stylee!


The rather camp (although you don’t do gay in Africa so he’s happily married) Mr Banda who gave me my first ever toe extentions…I know, gross! (p.s. this is obviously Nellie in the pic, not me, I didn’t get that much of a tan)!


My fabulous 1980’s inspired, individually hand painted, very WAH-like (except they only cost about a tenner) fake nails!


Jiri jiri - a Zambian obsession. Ludicrously strong alcohol sold in a sachet for about 20p each....I brought 20 back!


3 generations of the Wightman family….Granny, Nellie and beautiful Onyx. Many thanks for looking after me, and much love xxx

p.s. many thanks also to Chiwala, Brett, George, Regina and all in the village, and everyone else who helped make it such a fantastic fortnight.

5 reasons why I LOVE Angel Jackson

It’s not just because I’m kinda obsessed with their crazy, brilliant, pr manager Felicity, and think she might be my soulmate (although I am, and I do), but right now I just wanna blow my entire crappy measly salary on Angel Jackson….here are the 5 reasons why…

1. It’s a Young independent label. When I was younger (and far more naïve and idealistic) I vowed I’d only ever buy clothes from young up-and-coming designers. Then the British High Street got its act together and my money and morals went down the drain. Angel Jackson is that young independent label you’re always hoping to find though – i.e. one that’s actually good. And despite their success Katie and Millie (the sisters behind it all) have remained uncorrupted and stayed true to their dream. Arcadia group go suck on that (except Tosho which I love, eek)!

2. Their Jaguar bags. I have two, and apparently I’m not the only one with a thing for them. French Vogue have just called in a selection of the patent luxor totes, and Anna Trevelyan (aka Gaga’s stylist) loves them too…I’m in good company don’t you recks?

3. They’re Ethical! Yes yes, I know it’s very de jour at the moment, and believe me I don’t usually go in for all this eco/ charity bull, but, Katie and Millie have acheived what I was beginning to think was impossible and created a young, sexy, ethical fashion label that’s not shit, smug or preachy. Hallelujah!

4. Bumbags. I love them, and really am too excited that 2010 is the year of their triumphant return. Mark my words, by 2011 you’ll all be wondering how you ever lived without one (or 8). I can’t wait to start freeing my hands and shoulders and putting my hips to good use once more, and these beauts are top of my bumming list. Oooh yeah!

5. Felicity. Ok, I know I said it wasn’t about her, but what can I say – I warned you I was a little obsessed……

Wanna be in my gang…

I really do have the best dressed friends, most stylish and elegant friends. I’ve known this lot since secondary school, and as we’ve grown up we’ve all developed and settled into our own styles. Last night everyone was looking particularly gorgeous for Norma’s birthday, so I thought I’d snap a few pics and show them off!

The Birthday girl showed off her enviable curves (Beyonce who?) in a Greek goddess draped body-con dress from ASOS. As a girl there’s nothing better than getting dressed up in your Birthday outfit – it’s the one time of the year when you can really go for it, and basically anything’s acceptable! Norma kept it simple and (relatively) demure though, and I think she looked stunning!

I was very happy to have a playsuit buddy last night. I thought Adz worked this polka dot ToSho number very well (although with a figure like hers it’s not hard)! It could easily have looked a bit slutty, but as usual Ada managed to look classy. Maybe it’s just because I know she’s training as a lawyer, but Adz always has this air of sophistication no matter how much flesh is being flashed!

Louise should just be a model, end of. I mean look at her. She looks regal in her £3 EBay stirrup leggings – I mean who can pull off white leggings?! The sheer panelled body picks up on the big sheer trend heading our way, and is something I’ve been meaning to invest in for a while (jealous, moi, never!). Most of all though we were all loving the head scarf. Lou just threw it on to protect her hair from the snow, but after a million compliments decided to roll with it! I thought it gave her an air of ‘50’s elegance, and was all very Audrey Hepburn in an open top car!

Finally there was me - new red hair, peach lace body (one of my top 5 fave items in my wardrobe right now), my ‘never fails’ ToSho jumpsuit, and 1980’s belt I nicked off my mum…Ready to play! Annoyingly I have to admit the competition for look of the night was pretty hot….now remind me why I’m friends with this lot again?!

How I found the perfect gloves to give people the finger in…

My boots obsession has been replaced with a new found glove fetish. It all began when I lost my mittens (God – never thought I’d be saying that post-primary school). To be honest, they weren’t really working out anyway. I was finding the whole uni-hand thing quite restrictive, and was getting frustrated as I couldn’t partake in my two favourite past-times – smoking and giving people the finger. So, although their loss was a bit of a pain I wasn’t heartbroken.

The mission then began to find some new hand wear more suited to my needs. With mittens out I narrowed my options down to the following;
a. Normal gloves
b. Fingerless gloves

When I say narrowed what I actually mean is defined, because I brought a pair of each. In typical Sisi G style they couldn’t be more different (and not just because of the finger thing either).

Pair a. (the normal ones), aren’t really that normal at all. I found them sulking on a corner rail in H&M, and I instantly knew (as you can do when something’s only £7.99) that they were going home with me. I’m absolutely feeling velvet right now. It’s just perfect for winter/ Christmas, and I love the fact that it’s so ‘90’s, and Shakespeare’s Sister/ Four Weddings (aka The Best British Comic Film Ever Made). The embellishment is obviously a joy - I think it’s lovely to have a little bit of bling on your gloves. Plain leather gloves feel so corporate and dull all of a sudden, so I was overjoyed to find a high-street glove that offered that little bit more.

Glove a. and I were getting on swimmingly until I saw pair b. I was on my way back from a particularly fulfilling morning of Finance training (yes – this is exactly what I got into magazines for), when I saw them hanging from a stall by Camden tube; they looked so brash and naughty I just had to take a closer look. Forget ‘Fierce’ these bad boys are Weapons of Mass Destruction. They’re SO sex – they’re like if ‘80’s Madonna, (my darling) MJ, a cheese grater and a gay S&M freak had an orgy, these would be the result. They're like power gloves - you can't help but feel in control when you're wearing them - I mean, who's gonna mess with spike hands, eh?!
I approached with caution (both the gloves and the stall holder), and did my best nonchalant bartering….
Me: “Um. How much are the gloves?”
Stall holder: “£15”
Me: “Is that your best price?”
Stall holder: “Yes”
Me: (Unconvincing contemplation whilst salivating and making love to them with my eyes) “Hhmmmm, I’m not sure….”
Stall holder: “Ok – I give you for £14”
Me: “Perfect!”
The deed was done, and I became the proud owner of two new pairs of gloves in two weeks – Fash-tastic!