5 Things to Do This Weekend

As it looks to be another rainy weekend, here are a few ideas, whether they're during a revision break or you're just bored and longing for this supposed summer to finally reach us...

1) See The Great Gatsby | The decadent Roaring 20s era has taken the world by storm recently as Baz Luhrmann's highly anticipated remake of the classic American 20s novel, often cited as one of the best books ever written, is released in the UK today, after the initial Christmas release date was pushed back until now. I've watched the trailer (I wrote a post on it a while ago here if you still haven't seen it) about 30 times and I still get goosebumps every time I watch it. It's sure to be 2 hours of Prada flapper dresses, an AMAZING soundtrack and of course Leo DiCaprio. An unmissable combination. If the film leaves you with even worse 20s fever, head down to Harrod's this weekend, where you'll currently find a pop up Great Gatsby cocktail bar in the store's underground tasting room and wine shop. It closes on the 20th so hurry up! (Although if Harrod's is out of the question you could always whip up a few mint juleps, side cars or if gin is your thing, maybe some martinis - all quintessentially 20s beverages.)

2) Finalise Summer Plans | If you haven't already, get booking! I finally got my travelling stuff sorted out the other week and I've never been so excited - Budapest, Prague, Berlin and Amsterdam within 13 days (the photo featured is of the Saturday night summer bath parties in Budapest. Eeeek). So whether you're planning to head off on a boozy break, a festival or two or a culturally enriching (aha) backpacking excursion, get it sorted and it'll give you some motivation through all the rain and revision.

3) Watch an Audrey Hepburn film | Whenever it's raining, all I want to do is stay in bed with my Audrey Hepburn boxset, often replaying the final "CAT!" scene in Breakfast At Tiffany's with that famous kiss in the rain featuring the beautiful George Peppard.

4) Sort Out Your Summer Wardrobe | Again, when you're bogged down with mind maps and Post-It notes, it helps to keep summer in mind. I love this boho Fringed Coachella Beach Kimono from River Island and will definitely be donning it on a few beaches this summer. I usually look to a few celebrities whose style I admire for summer style inspiration, which is currently Blake Lively (or ANY of the clothes she wears as Serena in Gossip Girl) and Gillian Zinser. I love how laid back their style is, but also polished when need be.

5) Get a Free Graze Box On Me | I got my first Graze box this week and it has changed my life. You can rate hundreds of snacks online between 'Bin, Try It, Like, Love, Send Soon' and they'll send you a selection of the stuff they think you'd like. I received summer berry flapjacks, oatcakes with red onion marmalade, a white chocolate, Amaretti biscuit and coconut mixture and their 'Billionaire's Shortbread', containing milk chocolate, fudge pieces, almonds and cranberries. Now thanks to me, if you quote 'TJRRKJTD' on www.graze.com, you'll receive your first box for free! I'd definitely recommend them, they're perfect for coming home early from college to and their food is supposed to be pretty good for you. If you're into that.

Bon week-end!

Bises,

Riona

Party At Gatsby's

Party At Gatsby's by rionadoherty featuring frock and frill

Grab your pearls, old kitten heels, fringed dresses and ostentatious Primark junk jewellery - the Roaring 20s are definitely having a moment. Just look to Gucci's S/S'12 1920s inspired dresses, the prohibition parties on Made In Chelsea, Baz Luhrmann's upcoming The Great Gatsby, Kate Spade's The Great Gatsby book clutch and latest of all, Frock and Frill's stunning new flapper dresses...

The above designs can all be purchased through ASOS here (but they're selling out quickly) and you can peruse the entire collection through the Frock and Frill site here.

Gucci Spring 2012

It feels like we've been waiting forever and a day for Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby to be released, after having been delayed from Christmas to Spring, but we're finally nearing the 16th May. To whet your appetite, have a look at the current edition of US Vogue, devoted to the upcoming blockbuster.

Carey Mulligan (playing Daisy Buchanan) dons A/W'13 Oscar de la Renta and an annoying facial expression on US Vogue cover.

Down under, Karlie Kloss is kitted out in flapper-esque Miu Miu in honour of the film (clearly relevant cover stars are running low on the ground...)

The film doesn't seem to get much of a reaction in the current edition of British Vogue but hopefully it will be heavily featured in the June edition... Tip: if you want to read The Great Gatsby, be sure to buy it before the film comes out and it inevitably gets replaced with an ugly 'now a major motion picture' cover.

Bises,

Riona

Ritzy's: The Best Speakeasy In Town

Once again I've been gone a while so - Happy Easter, RIP Margaret Thatcher and happy 18th birthday to me. After months of waiting to finally turn the desirable age, Friday saw me officially become an adult and what better way to celebrate than turning my house into a swanky speakeasy to celebrate the end of my own prohibition?

The entire first week of the Easter holidays was dedicated to transforming the house into the best (and, erm, only) damn speakeasy in town. I'd already sent out the invitations weeks beforehand, revealing the password and setting the 1920s tone, so then the decor just had to match up...

The eBay-found Gramaphone

The tin 'Gin Bath' (sourced through a a second hand site online) full of ice which brimmed fuller of alcohol as more people arrived

We collected about 40 empty wine bottles from the restaurant I work in, scrubbed the labels off and stuck our own on to evoke the Speakeasy feel. Most were crammed into the kitchen windowsill with candles stuck in - all of the light came from either candles or smaller side lights.

The cover up for the Speakeasy (featuring my cousin and her boyfriend)... Our washing machine happened to break a few weeks ago, so every cloud...

My lovely Nan and I in front of the sign my Dad made and the prohibition punch 'Shinin' Moon' next to it. (if you can't tell, Pinterest inspired a LOT of this party)

Flappers! Myself, Ellie, Amy and Rhiannon (note the candle-wielding wine bottles in the windowsill)

Motherrrrrr

We also did a load of 'Wanted' posters of the guests coming - possibly a bit Western, but y'know, Al Capone and all that. All in all an amazing night if I do say so myself, unfortunately I played the classic 18 year old a bit too well and can't remember most of the night. But from the photos I must say it looks good. It went on til 4am (not that I would know as I was carried to bed far earlier on) and everyone left seeming to wish it was still the 20s.

If you're thinking of having a similar themed do, you can get some great decorations/inspiration here: http://www.partydelights.co.uk/themes/1920s-party-supplies.aspx

http://pinterest.com/rionadoherty/roaring-20s-speakeasy-great-gatsby-party/

Some of the girls struggled to find a decent flapper headband, so instead of paying a stupid amount for a very poor quality one online, why not make your own? After trawling online for ages, my mum made both of ours with a metre of thick bead-embellished ribbon from a haberdashery in town, a feather and a button for about £5 each.

Hopefully Ritzy's will be opening for business again soon for an event I can actually remember...

Bises,

Riona

Who Is This Gatsby?

Bon soir. I broke up from Sixth Form today until 7th January finally and whilst most people are out on the town, poor little ID-less me is sitting on her laptop with a glass of rosé... What a way to end the term...

Anyway, my spirits shall not be dampened as A NEW GREAT GATSBY TRAILER WAS RELEASED TODAY! I seriously cannot express my excitement for this film enough. Its delay to 2013 is killing me a little more every day.

So firstly, earlier on in May we had this little snippet...

...which was more than enough to engross me. To me, this films ticks every box. Apart from Leonardo DiCaprio starring (which, let's face it, is enough reason in itself) it's set in New York, the best backdrop in the world; it's directed by visual genius Baz Luhrmann; we see Gatsby's excessively glamorous, debaucherous parties that we can only dream of attending and of course the time it's set in - the decadent 20s. In true Luhrmann style, the songs featured completely contrast with the film's setting and also couldn't be more different from one another- the beat of Jay-Z's Church In The Wild and Jack White's Love Is Blindness cover work perfectly together. Without wanting to sound like a self-righteous film critic, the part where we see someone diving into the circular pool then cutting to the miners and then a man riding a horse up the lawn is, accompanied by Jack White's signature raw emotion, it has to be said - visually orgasmic.

Then today we were treated to these...

Once again a great music selection, now featuring Florence + The Machine and Filter.

The official posters were also released today, showing Leo looking suave:

Now just to wait until May 2013...

The 20s decadence has inspired me to throw a 20s Speakeasy themed 18th party... It sounds like a strange theme for an 18th but I think it's perfect; a secret back entrance, 20s cocktails in Mason jars and teacups, 'bathtub gin', gambling, fedoras, moustaches, flapper dresses, suspenders and art deco decorations... Watch this space.

Bises,

Riona