PUMA BY RIHANNA CREEPER

Yep its a pretty odd name for a shoe - but Rihanna isn't exactly well, not odd. She's the queen of strange and all things street so its not really a surprise that PUMA collaborated with her on a range.

There are 3 new colour ways and they are all available right now! I am obsessed with the white ones. Remixing the iconic PUMA Suede, the PUMA Creeper exudes a little bit of punk and rebel with its notorious creeper platform sole and suede upper. This month’s drop features NEW colour variations of peacoat/cool blue, off white/gum, and coral cloud pink/green/oatmeal.

I have been deliberating on a pair of platform sneakers for a while now. I am terrified that they'll make me look short and chunky. But I like the neutral colour of these platform soles, they're somehow less daunting and definitely less "Spice-Girlish" than ones with white soles.

The PUMA Creeper will be available at PUMA SELECT stores in Cape Town, Bree Street and Johannesburg, Braamfontein.

Life Via Phone

I haven't done one of these posts in so long. Maybe not even all year.
What inspired it is that I am getting a little disillusioned with blogging. Part of me thinks it may be dying out. Which is scary given that I am soon to be launching a new blog - but that is a project close to my heart and is far more practical than a fashion and lifestyle blog. So it will run on passion and practicality and I have every faith that it will be well received. But more on that another time.

I know we live in an instant world. Instagram and Snapchat are killing the lifestyle blogs, and we have no need to go to their actual sites to get the information we want. RewardStyle hasn't really got to the SA blogs yet, but it will only be a matter time before we start being more Instagram focussed when it comes to information and shopping.

I then had to sit and ponder on why I started blogging. The reason was a creative outlet, and to document my life and also to share information on pretty things. I love shopping and I love sharing that with all of you - who doesn't love talking about shopping actually?
The blog has grown and taken on new twists and turns, but I really want it to retain more of a focus on fashion, travel and what is going on in my life. As for makeup and beauty posts? Well, I am not a beauty blogger in the traditional sense. I only share with you what has worked for me and what I love. I couldn't pick apart the chemical components or decipher an ingredient list, I just like what I like, and will let you know if it works - for me anyway. All I can do is hope that you find the information useful.

I have some amazing partnerships coming up and I've worked hard on keeping things as true to me as possible. I am also going to bite the bullet and get in front of the camera more, and show you how the clothes I spend so much time and money on actually look on me - probably helpful on a style blog no? I'll figure out a way of getting over my camera shyness. You know, grow as a person or something.

Now that was a whole lot of waffling on about nothing in particular. I just wanted to get personal again. Because I miss you guys.

So here's what has been going on. Rocco. My whole world and whole heart consumed by a ball of fluff. Dave and I have had him for just over 3 weeks now and it has been a total upheaval. We've lived pretty cushy and selfish lives up until now. Sleeping in, travelling, going out for dinner a few times a week. Now we are up at night letting Rocco out to pee. Then up again at 5am when he wants to pee again and then play, and eat - and then has the cheek to go back to sleep while we get ready for work. Eventually he'll be fine left at home for an hour or three - but as a puppy we have to take him along with us, or forego those dinners. Travelling means arranging sitters for him. I've spent hours researching pet friendly restaurants and accommodation so we can take him with us as much as possible - so watch this space for 2016. Pet friendly travel will be my game!
But it is completely worth it. Puppy training, puppy creche, vet runs and what seems like millions spent on toys and treats has been more rewarding than anything I've experienced yet. A cuddle from this fur-kid could cure anything from bad days, to broken hearts. He is just that wonderful. So wonderful in fact, that he has his own Instagram account @thatdogrocco. This is more for documenting his life and not annoying my own followers than it is a hope for pet Instagram fame. But hey, Mr Price Home already featured him, so maybe there is stardom on the cards for my boy wonder.

Other than being obsessed with my dog, I've been trying to get into shape. For summer, and in general. I've been so good with training and running. My eating outside of my incredibly elaborate and healthy breakfasts leaves much to be desired however. And that needs to change. I am even contemplating hypnosis to get rid of my chronic sugar addiction.
Weight training with my trainer Torie has seen a massive change in my body. I don't jiggle as much and I am stronger than I've ever been. Even after taking a 6 week break from running, I was able to finish a 6km without a problem - a first for asthmatic, sad-act me.

 This weekend past, we took a little break with some friends and went to Sun City. I hadn't been for years and years, and I'd also never been to the Lost City or Valley of Waves. I was completely blown away by the opulence and the incredible attention to detail. It felt as though we were in another world completely. I totally get the hype. I am not really that into big resorts and prefer boutique hotels, but this is a South African institution and definitely one to experience. I also had a slush puppy for the first time in forever (not counting the Fanta ones in Singapore - but those are completely different). I now have a full blown addiction that I will need to wrestle with - especially given my complaint with sugar above. As the occasional treat though, I will be indulging in one of these. Movie date anyone?

I got quite a bit of sun, and I'll definitely talk more about the Lipidol suntan oil in another post. I would never have thought an oil would protect me from the sun as I spent my teens slathering it on to fry myself - but with a SPF of 25, it did the trick and I came home from our trip without any damage. And there is a heat wave over there at the moment so we're talking serious sun.

Thats me for now. I want to get back into these posts again. I know they are not particularly glamorous, or packed with professionally shot images. But I want to go back to sharing and engaging with you, and having the feeling of just sitting down with old friends over coffee and catching up. 

xx

Summer staples under R500

Superbalist may as well hire a delivery guy just for me. I order something every week. I wish I was joking but I get sucked into the vortex that is their "New" section every damn time. As for the apartment stuff, don't even get me started.

The thing is, they're becoming tough to beat when it comes to finding exactly what I want. You need a donut lilo? Sure thing, they have it. Vinyl, headphones, or the latest sneakers? Done. Really slim shelves because the space on either side of my bed is ridiculous and I can't have bedside tables - no problem (the struggle is real).
Although what I seem to have collected the most, is dresses. They keep updating their site with perfect summer staples, or the prettiest prints, and everything that is bang on trend that your fashionable little heart could hope for.

Being an old bag, and not particularly trendy, I stick to staples. I'll dabble in whatever current styling is chic, like the off-the-shoulder look this season, or a bit of fringe here and there - but it'll always be in simple colours like black, chambray, nudes or khaki. So neutrals basically. I find these easy to pair with pretty sandals and I am out of the door in 15 minutes. (Okay Dave is reading this and eye-rolling so I'll correct it to 30 minutes, in the interest of full disclosure).

With the festive season creeping up on us, I'm limiting spending on myself, or trying to anyway. So I've found a few must-have dresses that are easy to style for under R500. Winning!
Actually the most "winning" part about it is the free delivery and the fact that I didn't have to step into a mall. With women just about mauling each other at certain retailers this past week, I am more than okay with doing all my festive shopping online. I'll be posting more on that next week with a few online gift guides, so that you too, do not have to brave the wild.

TOP ROW:

Left: Khaki dress, R329 | Middle: Chambray scrappy dress, R329 | Right: Black slip, R399

BOTTOM ROW:

Left: Black Off Shoulder dress, R499 | Middle: Stripe shirt dress, R329 | Right: Nude shirt dress, R399

All of these just need some gladiator sandals or thongs and a denim/leather jacket and you're out the door. They're also perfect to pair with sneakers which is some brave styling, but something I am loving lately.

Happy shopping!

BALMAIN X H&M

Thursday the 5th of November sees the worldwide launch of the Balmain for H&M collection. Us lucky Capetonians thankfully had a store open in the nick of time. Joburg fashion girls will have to wait a little longer until the Sandton store opens on the 7th.

The pieces aren't priced like the rest of H&M, and many are well over the R2000 mark - but I suppose it pales in comparison to its actual Balmain equivalent which would be more like R20 000. I've put together my rich-girl wishlist of what I'd love to own from the collection. Realistically I'll probably have to narrow it down to one, in which case I'd be choosing between the green handbag or the leather jacket. Given that Christmas is coming, I might actually have to just settle for the t-shirt.

Le sigh.

What are your favourites from the collection?