A week in the life of a fashionista

No Debutante has had many fashion moments in the past week from a hair restyle with Bloggs Salon in Bristol, to selling pre-loved garms at the Bzzaar Jumble  & ending the week at the Style in the City fashion show, that I attended with my plus one, six year old daughter Sylvie, for her first ever fashion show, sat on the FROW no less! 

My fashion week started with clashed up outfit & a hairstyle very much in need of doing, I've said it once & I'll say it again, you can never wear enough prints at the same time! 

Clashing up the prints in a Kuccia bomber jacket & BTR fashion salvaged trousers worn with a white Lazy Oaf long sleeve tee & super cute pink Puma trainers.

I popped into Bloggs Salon on Tuesday to meet the team for an article I am writing for Bristol 24/7. I am so pleased with my restyle by the owner and director, Joe Hemmings, who hand cut my hair down to almost a buzz cut, without the sign of any clippers, proper old school stylee & a great technique; my fringe is now super short with some longer layers on the crown for texture. I have been considering the big shave off for a while so this is pretty much bang on for me! Let's not forget the colours, named Twinkle Fuchsia and Pink Sorbet by L'Oreal, the cutest names ever! I just love it! Thanks so much to Joe, who I have to say is the happiest, most positive hairstylist I have ever met. He seemed genuinely excited whilst creating my new do, which makes this fashionista a very happy customer! If you live in Bristol, get yourselves over to Bloggs Salon! 

By Wednesday, I was back at work with my new hairstyle and a sharp monochrome outfit, contrasting with the pink crop. I even got a free massage at work on this day, this is definitely a week for perks! Plus the sun came out! Winning! 

I wore an oversized Lazy Oaf shirt over leggings, with some frilly Meadham Kirchhoff X Topshop socks & Dr Martens shoes. This is as close as you'll get me to office wear! 

Thursday was oversized layering day, it was warm enough to have bare legs which was amaze! Sadly, we are back to warmer clothes here in Bristol as the temperatures drop again! Let's all keep those positve thoughts going that the sun will return! I paired my oversized Monki dress with a white Dutty tee, Adidas sports socks (my staple) & Reeboks & felt super comfy!

By the weekend it was still sunny but I had managed to sign myself up for another day indoors at the Bzzaar Jumble. A fun event where Bristolian fashionistas & jumblers come together to sell their pre-loved garms (plus any other random stuff they have laying about). I have noticed a trend at each event, everyone seems to buy each others pre-worn garms, I am not sure much money is made but its all good fun & the garms get passed around in an ethical way rather than sending it all to the charity shops & the inevitability of a landfill ending! 

I wore a vintage jumpsuit that I found at a fashion salvage event & was actually going to sell at the jumble. I'm glad I tried it on again & changed my mind to keep it! I wrapped a printed H&M scarf (from the last Bzzaar Jumble) to show I actually do have a waist & popped on some Tezla earrings & a simple pair of Adidas Gazelles, a contrast to the print-fest that was the rest of this outfit! Boom!

The No Debutante stall of pre-loved garms at the Bzzaar Jumble

Loving these Bzzaar Jumblers dressed up in the Barbie style vintage ski-suit worn by
  fashion designer & blogger Dulcie Horn who literally had a different outfit on
every time I saw her & this bizarre but amazing SLUT knitted vest that seemed to really suit
comedian Roisin Crowley Linton! 

The fashion week ended at the Style in the Cityfashion show, an event by a lovely trio of Bristol stylists who styled up pre-loved garms from St Peters Hospice to raise money for the charity. This cause is very close to my heart as my Dad, after a long battle with cancer, was lovingly cared for by this wonderful charity in his last few days. Big love to St Peters Hospice xx

Check out me & lil' Sylvie on the Frow & a photo of Sylvie & a giant pineapple sculpture completely unrelated to the show! Sylvie insisted on the photo being taken. 

On the Frow at Style in the City & the unrelated pineapple sculpture

Find out more about what went on at the Style in the City fashion show in my article for Bristol 24/7 which will be live very soon in my Lifestyle/Fashion section. 

The Style in the City girls 

Polka dots & Retro florals - No Debutante's fave outfits from the Style in the City show using garms from St Peters Hospice

Lil Fashionista pre show selfies

If you are having a fashion event, a new collection or fun event you would like No Debutante to promote please get in touch!

No Debutante promotes fashion independents, new designers & sustainable fashion. 

Check out my work with Bristol 24/7 magazine under my name 

Emma Gorton-Ellicott

If you are interested in collaborating with No Debutante or getting featured on the No Debutante blog please contact me nodebutanteblog@gmail.com

Keep up with No Debutantes OOTD posts, collabs and current fashion obsessions posted daily on all of the following. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest all under the #nodebutante name. 

Thanks for checking in Fashionistas

ND xx 

Spring Pastels

No Debutante adores pastels!

Although it's pastel time all year round for me, these super sweet shades are really big this summer. The sunshine has finally arrived and those pastels are putting a spring in our step, from clothing to accessories and rumour has it lilac is the big hair colour for 2018; a pastel colour palette works as a unisex colourway that everyone can wear. 
Whether its soft lilacs, baby pinks, powdered blues, soft mints or marshmallow yellows; pastels are your friends this summer. Get cute! 

No Debutante wearing supercute lilac That Thing beanie, mint Fila X Mickey Mouse t-shirt and lilac Waste Of Time cardigan by Lazy Oaf.

Lazy Oaf always do pastels so well! Pastel pink short dungarees from one of their latest drops

Nineties stylin' Men's colour panel hoodie from Lazy Oaf

PVC Pastel Pinks by Nico Panda SS 2018

Pastel Pink 'Off The Wall' hoodie from the Vans X Lazy Oaf collaboration. WANT!

If you are having a fashion event, a new collection or fun event you would like No Debutante to promote please get in touch!

No Debutante promotes fashion independents, new designers & sustainable fashion. 

Check out my work with Bristol 24/7 magazine here under my name 

Emma Gorton-Ellicott

If you are interested in collaborating with No Debutante or getting featured on the No Debutante blog please contact me nodebutanteblog@gmail.com

Keep up with No Debutantes OOTD posts, collabs and current fashion obsessions posted daily on all of the following. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest all under the #nodebutante name. 

Thanks for checking in Fashionistas

ND xx 

Time for change - The battle against fast fashion

The more I learn about sustainable fashion and how fast fashion is becoming a big contributor to destroying our planet, (it was estimated over 235 million unwanted clothing from Britain alone ended up in landfill last year) the less interested I become in buying new clothes from the high street. Now, I am no innocent in fast fashion, I used to do a Primark big shop for the family twice a year & I have no idea how much I was buying in between that on trips into town on my lunch breaks. 

I became obsessed with owning the next big thing, I honestly liked the disposable fashion idea inspired by wealthy Japanese kids in Harajuku, I couldn't afford it so the high street was the next best thing, Top Shop, Urban Outfitters & especially cheap as chips Primarni. 

Fast Fashion Primark Sunday haul from 2014 blog post

Previous to the high street obsession, I ran my own label and made my own clothes, many of them were sustainably sourced & upcycled from old garms, so why had I fallen so far from the DIY/make & do ethos I had when designing from my own fashion label? It was time. I had two small children & seriously had no time to make my own garms anymore, I was tired & frankly penniless! The fashion business came to an end & cheap, fast fashion was my only vice, I could just afford it. I then got a job at Venue Magazine, which I loved, so I had some extra money to buy more garms & could buy everything I needed online, just sitting at my desk. 

So, I still had no time to make my own garms, I had become a lazy shopper, just consuming whenever I wanted to at work. I started to discover new, independent labels like Lazy Oaf, who I still love, the prices weren't cheap but the garms were unique, good quality & on limited runs. I still buy a select few Lazy Oaf garms a year, I have to be honest, they are my ittle treat to myself. 

One of my treat Lazy Oaf garms with a slogan that is, very much so, in context! 

In 2015 I was invited along to a fashion salvage event by sustainable fashion activist & now good friend, Helen Brown, I was there for the blogging really, I wanted to get an article out of it. The team at Bristol Textiles Recycling completely woke me up out of my fast fashion haze, what on earth was I doing mass buying from Primark?

No Debutante & Helen Brown at a BTR fashion salvage event 2015

I wasn't completely cured from fast-fashion at this point. I filled my bags with fashion salvaged clothing, loving every moment of trawling through the bins for more fashion items! I was hungry for it, I felt awful. Helen made me feel a bit better by saying I was saving them from landfill, but in reality it was just contributing to my fast-fashion problem. However, I am also a massive clothes hoarder and Helen knew it! I still have most of the garms from that fashion-salvage event back in 2015, except for a couple of items (one of which I shrank in the wash). 

Helen Brown & No Debutante styled up in fashion salvaged garms 2015

I am happy to say that, even though I am still really too busy to do so, I have started creating my own garms again, inspired by all the amazing fashion designers I have met as a writer but also to start up again, where I left off, creating sustainable fashion in small runs to limit garment waste & save myself from fast fashion.

A sample garm from the Fruit Salad fashion label by No Debutante

As a fashion blogger who used to mainly write posts about my latest outfits, my fave high street shops & the latest fashion trends, it has come to my attention that I am no longer that blogger. I don't have enough new items to share, I am buying less. I am enjoying the challenge to only buy garments that I really love & styling up as many different outfit variations as I can with the items that are already in my wardrobe. 

I write about sustainable fashion & fashion independents, I still love fashion! My instagram posts are beginning to reflect this personal change in fashion, I no longer post 'What I Wore' every day (yes everyday, I was obsessed) I take little snap shots of outfits with the occasional WIW full body shots. I will, of course, still follow & promote fashion, it has been a real challenge for me to turn away from fast fashion but I feel I have grown up & realised what is actually more important to me as a fashion journalist & fashion advocate. 

No Debutante instagram images

Fashion has always been fast, it still is, but we can all change our ways, get a little bit wiser & consider a bit of slow fashion. Instead of focusing on trends & the next big thing, why not move our focus on to working with what we already have? 

Do you really need to own these things? Get a bit more savvy, it's not just about the fashion item or the label, its about how you wear it. I am not saying stop buying fashion labels & new garms, I still do it, treat yourself but slow down; the fashion labels will still be there but perhaps this will help to stop crazy, weekly fast fashion drops, that brands like Supreme are known for, it really is not necessary, if we slow down, they will too. 

Independent and sustainable fashion brands in Bristol
inc She Shirts, That Thing, Laa Woof, Duvet Days & Tezla Designs

Consider buying sustainably made, quality clothing that will last longer, or maybe, now that you are buying less, you can support local & independent designers, (many of whom promote sustainable fashion) keeping our fashion industry moving & your threads lookin unique, as independent designers only create small runs of their garms, keeping waste to a minimum.

It is estimated that Britain will spring clean & de-clutter their wardrobes sending an astonishing 680 million garms to charity shops & landfill each year, (that is in just Britain!)with many of the charity shops passing most of their donations onto landfill too. Perhaps give a second thought to your de-cluttering & fast-fashion obsessions, if repair & remake isn't your thing yet, why not make a start by buying less & resale/pass on good quality items. Stop now, save the planet, get involved! I'd like to say it's never too late but that isn't true is it? 



Thanks to this interesting article from The Guardian for the stats! 

If you are having a fashion event, a new collection or fun event you would like No Debutante to promote please get in touch!

No Debutante promotes fashion independents, new designers & sustainable fashion. 

Check out my work with Bristol 24/7 magazine here under my name 

Emma Gorton-Ellicott

If you are interested in collaborating with No Debutante or getting featured on the No Debutante blog please contact me nodebutanteblog@gmail.com

Keep up with No Debutantes OOTD posts, collabs and current fashion obsessions posted daily on all of the following. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest all under the #nodebutante name. 

Thanks for checking in Fashionistas

ND xx 

Bristol's finest Insta fashionistas

Here's a quick catch up with the amazing, independent Bristol fashion designers who are catching No Debutante's eye on Instagram......

Laa Woof

Kick ass feminist fashion from the outrageous and fabulous Laa Woof! 

Always repping strong women with big prints, sparkly colours & amazing photo shoots! Laa Woof is a girlboss, she is exciting & inspiring & also became my big fashion article for Bristol 24/7 this month; where you will can out more about the latest collection  'Vulva La Revolution' that mixes festival & clubwear fashion with bondage and female empowerment. This collection is on fire! Meeeeeeooooooow! 

Who runs the world? Laa Woof!
Model@antonia_purdie wearing garms from the Vulva la Revolution collection
Photography @sonnybarthley

Duvet Days

This bright & bold collection of 90s prints & streetwear garms grabbed my attention on Instagram & although upcycling retro duvet covers into garms isn't a new thing, in this amazing, upcycling world; these fab designers have taken it to a new level by only using duvets to create their amazing co-ords and cute streetwear pieces. Duvet Days are all about sustainability & ethical fashion, they collaborate with local designers and tailors Jokoto too (watch this space for more on Jokoto), who help to recreate the Duvet Days vision into super-cool, bespoke handmade shirts. Keep it local, bright & beautiful! 

Bold retro striped co-ords at Duvet Days

Tezla Designs

It's no secret that No Debutante loves Tezla & who wouldn't? This blingin' & bloomin AMAZE collection of contemporary streetwear jewellery & accessories brand is soooo on point, with the memphis style prints all handpainted onto small runs of vibrant, fresh styles. There are so many amazing designs to choose from including the original circular versions to oversized triangles and hexagon shaped earrings and rings, get yourself over to Tezla and brighten up your ears this summer! Read how No Debutante discovered Tezla. 

Custom earrings hand painted by Tezla 

She Shirts

A new collaboration between feminist fashionista Bristol Uni students who were tired of seeing fellow female student wearing mainstream 'so called' feminist style slogan t-shirts & decided to create their own, with all profits going towards female charities rather than into the pockets of fast fashion corporates. The range consists of basic but effective t-shirts printed with handwritten & drawn images with designs including the Hands Off print & Woman Up slogan tee's. 

She Shirts also gave No Debutante the greatest honour by quoting me on Instagram for an article I wrote about them for Bristol 24/7 on International Women's Day. These gals are all about empowering women, which is just so positive!!! Great photoshoot too!  

Hands Off & All bodies are beautiful feminist fashion tees by She Shirts

That Thing

These long time friends of No Debutante, never fail to impress me with their brimming collections of streetwear for men, women & unisex garms. That Thing are currently having a successful run with their newly launched Asos marketplace Vintage collection which features contemporary style shirts, jackets, denims & sportswear all from the late 80s and early 90s, repping retro style & the That Thing brand. The current contemporary collection features cuddly streetwear garms in soft fleeces, sweats, logo tees & joggers in creams, greys and monochromes, perfect for the longest winter ever! (Read more on the collection & That Thing in my Bristol 24/7 article) 

That Thing are also ambassadors for independent designers and offer many Bristol designers including (Tezla & Duvet Days) a platform at their Stokes Croft shop, to showcase their talents. That Thing are just the best! 

That Thing AW 17/18 collection including the cuddly fleece hoodie & the amazing ABC sweatshirt

If you are having a fashion event, a new collection or fun event you would like No Debutante to promote please get in touch!

No Debutante promotes fashion independents, new designers & sustainable fashion. 

Check out my work with Bristol 24/7 magazine here under my name 

Emma Gorton-Ellicott

If you are interested in collaborating with No Debutante or getting featured on the No Debutante blog please contact me nodebutanteblog@gmail.com

Keep up with No Debutantes OOTD posts, collabs and current fashion obsessions posted daily on all of the following. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest all under the #nodebutante name. 

Thanks for checking in Fashionistas

ND xx