OOTD: Missguided in Manchester

So, these blog post pictures were all literally taken in less than 1 minute... It must be a world record in Blog photography! I had been told by a friend of mine, about a car park in Manchester which has amazing views over the city. The car park featured in an article about the 'Top Ten Places to go on a First Date in Manchester". The article recommends going up at sunset to take in the views and then heading onto the Northern Quarter for a delicious meal...

I headed up there to take some blog photos and was unfortunately interrupted by a car park warden who said that we couldn't take any images. He was very nice about it, but it's a real shame we won't be able to use this location again, as it really was very cool!

My outfit:

Sleeveless jackets are so hot right now... Mine is a golden oldie from Never Fully Dressed. I teamed this with a Primark Polo neck (one of many!) and my ASOS bleached, ripped jeans. My slip on pumps* were a prize that I won in a Missguided twitter competition - just goes to show, you got to be in it to win it! ;-)

I wanted to keep my look quite simple so I accessorised with some cool chain earrings and ring from Rings and Tings.

Rings and Tings is fast becoming one of my fave jewellery sites! They have a huge range of accessories to suit all styles and they are SO affordable! You may have seen my ring featured in my Red Nose day blog post. And I have a few other bangles and bracelets that I need to style up!

Have you ever entered any Twitter competitions and won?! What did you get?

17 comments Missguided, OOTD

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Manchester Arndale SS15 Video and Giveaway!

It's here!!

Manchester Arndale's Spring Summer video has finally launched, showing all the hot picks from the shopping centre that are in store now…



As I posted on my blog recently, I got to see all the Behind the Scenes action from the shoot, but the guys at Refinery have put together this super-awesome video, to really give you the low down on what happened on set! (This is seriously, SO cool!!)



To celebrate the launch of the advert, I have teamed up with Manchester Arndale to offer a £50 gift card to spend in any of the stores in the centre. Yes, that includes Topshop, River Island, Next, New Look, Quiz, H&M, Accessorize… the list goes on and on!

You can enter by Following Rock On Holly and Manchester Arndale on Twitter and tell us which is your favourite look from the shoot by commenting below...

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The competition will run until April 10th, the winner will then be notified and will be able to collect their vouchers from Manchester Arndale. Good Luck!!

60 comments Giveaway, Manchester Arndale

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New Love: Nick Mulvey

It's been a crazy busy week this week, with blogging events and work! So it was nice to get whisked off to a super-chilled out gig at The Albert Hall on Monday. My boyfriend and I went to see Nick Mulvey, and he was ah-mazing! In all honesty, G-Ham booked the tickets that long ago that we got there and we were both a bit like, "what does he sing again...?" 


But, you NEED to check this guy out. He's totally the new Ben Howard but with an slight Spanish / flamenco influence. (He studied music in Havana, Cuba and is awesome on the guitar!) If you've heard of Nick before, it's probably due to his biggest hit Cucurucu.

The Albert Hall venue is also pretty cool, so I would highly recommend keeping an eye on their calendar to see who's coming up...

Here's a little taster of one of Nick's hits. This video will totally get you in the mood for the Summer / festival season....




- Nick said this song reminds him of Glasto. What does it remind you of?

3 comments Music

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Restaurant Launch: Avalanche MCR

This week I headed into town for the re-launch of one of Manchester's top restaurants - Avalanche. I was so excited about this as one of my fave things to do is eat my way around Manchester... It's so easy to get into a routine of always going to the same places. I have never been to Avalanche before, so I really didn't know what to expect. It turns out, it is an Italian restaurant (woohoo!) and on the evening we were treated to a whole array of food to sample.

We were in a side room off the main restaurant, and the lighting in here was slightly blue (hence the interestingly tinted photos - no we didn't eat blue food).

I went along with Gail from The Equinox Fashion (and my boyf, who was an honorary blogger for the night) The evening was LOVELY. It was such a relaxed setting and the atmosphere in the restaurant was really buzzing. The place was filled with bloggers and each table had it's own bottle of complimentary prosecco to kick start the event. So here's what we ate...

So many glasses! We were really looked after all night and at one point were even given a brief introduction to the wine menu. Even though they are primarily an Italian restaurant, Avalanche are bringing on board a variety of wines from all over the world which sound really tasty - I found this really interesting. I'd love to be one of those wine fanatics who know everything about wines?! (Note to self; book wine tasting course ASAP)

The Starter: Rice Balls with Fried Camembert, Bruschetta and Tomato Salsa

This was really delicious... The rice balls were my fave! It was a nice light starter, perfect for sharing. I'd definitely have this again.

The main course (See Picture No. 1!) And this plateful of veggies!

There were a variety of platters available on the night, we had the meat platter which included, chicken, skewered prawns, scallops wrapped in lemon sole, steak with peppercorn sauce and the roasted veg.

Now, the only tiny downside to the whole evening was that our main platter was slightly on the cold side when it arrived. But it was still very tasty, and I'm sure if we had asked for a replacement, we could have easily got one. However, in spite of this we did all rave about how tasty the steak was. The fish was also really good, and it was reassuring to see fresh fish on ice when we arrived in the restaurant.

 

A Trio of desserts! From left to right, Cheesecake, Chocolate Cake and Tiramisu

I am a cheesecake-whore, and I am pleased to say that this one didn't disappoint! It was rich and creamy, and just yummy. The tiramisu was also really rich and delish, so by the time I got to the the choccy cake, I was kind of full! But it was really good too!

Not only did we have amazing food, in a lovely setting, but there was also live music on the night. I love that, I think it gives a place a much better atmosphere.

Have you been to Avalanche before?! What's your fave kind of food to eat on a night out?

3 comments Food

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OOTD: Love Will Set You Free

Love will not betray you, dismay or enslave you, it will set you free...

One of my all time favourite song lyrics, from my fave bands - Mumford and Sons! (Which, funnily enough I am listening to as I write this!)

I went to a GORGEOUS wedding this month and it was perfect. The church, the vows, the beautiful Bride, the venue... I could go on and on! None of my friends have started getting married yet, so any Weddings that I have been to have been my boyfriend's friends. And as I don't get to see some of them that often, we always get asked the same questions... "So what's happening with you and Graham then?" 

Yup, G-Ham and I are in a long distance relationship and have been like this for the past 2 years, I think? But, strangely it seems to be working for us. When he first moved back down South, I have to admit it was really weird, as we had been living together and then were suddenly 4 hours apart (Waaaahhh!!). I think that one of the reasons it works is that we're both really focused on work right now, so we're both pretty busy during the week. We then try to see each other at least every other weekend, but it just depends on what's going on! No pressure!

At first, I used to get quite panicky that we didn't have a "LIFE PLAN" (and I do like a good plan). But one of the girls at the wedding said that as long as we were happy with how things were, then we shouldn't bow to peer pressure or timelines. So that's where we're at!

And I think my sweater sums our situation up perfectly :-)

Outfit- Sweater: Custom Made by Rock On Ruby, Shirt: Missguided, Ripped Jeans: ASOS, Shoe Boots: Primark

Are you a fan of the Mighty Mumford and Sons?! What's your favourite Love quote?

If you have any tips for Long distance love, do leave them below!

Leave a Comment OOTD, Rock On Ruby

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The Lowdown on Henry Holland by Henry Holland

So last weekend I was invited down to the Town Hall in our very own Bury, to attend a talk with ACTUAL Henry Holland! The talk was being held to raise money for the charity Speak Easy, which Henry's mum started many years ago... The charity helps people who have suffered from Strokes and are struggling to communicate as a result. The charity is close to my own heart as my grandad suffered from Strokes and Aphasia.

So once, we all donated and joined in the raffle, the talk began! On stage were the gorgeous Laura Weir (Fashion Features Editor at Vogue Magazine) and Henry Holland (Owner of House of Holland)

Henry himself started off selling Tshirts, so as someone in the same industry (with Rock On Ruby tees!!) the whole thing was really interesting for me to hear...

I've included a couple of the questions from the day below... FYI Laura and Henry are actually pretty good mates so it was a really nice, informal interview. But still with a lot of cool stories and info!


So let's start with a brief background, just in case you didn't already know:

Henry's dream was actually to work at a magazine, but after not being accepted onto a Fashion Journalism course, he decided to do a Journalism course (which Laura also did!) in London. He was soon living with Agyness Deyn (upcoming model at the time) and started printing Tshirts as a bit of a joke...! His tops hit the limelight after a friend of his (designer Gareth Pugh) walked onto the catwalk at the end of one of his shows wearing one of Henry's Tees. However, again this was no planned marketing step, Henry said Gareth was simply wearing the Tshirt as he had been running around backstage and hadn't had time to change! 

After this, Henry's tops were a huge talking point, he started his own range and had his own catwalk shows...With Agyness on the runway. During a trip to New York, Henry and Agyness attended a hot fashion party and were soon introduced to Anna Wintour. The next day Henry had sold tops to Barney's and on the 3rd day had a photoshoot with Italian Vogue. UNREAL.

He admits, that a lot of his journey was as a result of being in the right place, at the right time and being with the right people. But he was keen to state that his friendships are genuine and that's where a lot of buzz comes from at his fashion shows and launches...

The Questions:


What Roles Do Shows Play at Fashion Week?
The shows at Fashion Week require a MONTHS of work, but it's totally worth it. They are a great marketing tool as they are one of the few times when a designer gets to present their collection in a space that they have chosen, with the music, styling and set that they have chosen... It allows the designer to tell a story! It's also invaluable as it allows buyers and Press to see how the clothes move and fit. Retail is the same!


What inspires you?
Everything! I'm lucky enough that I can travel for work and this exposes me to a lot of inspirational things. Each collection that I have produced has a story and has been inspired by something / someone. An outfit should reflect your mood and match your emotion.

What's the best thing about your job?
Choosing who to work with and choosing my team! It's great not having to be answerable to anyone. At the moment I have a team of 20 that I manage. It's bizarre having to do things like London Fashion Week and then come back to the office and have to do team appraisals!

What's next for House of Holland?
HoH is launching a menswear range. It will be aimed at the guy that the House of Holland girl would date! I would definitely wear the new menswear range. We are also launching a Footwear range! apart from this House Of Holland is expanding international. We'll be going into new markets like Asia.

The talk was so informative and interesting, it's hard to cram it all into one blog post! I hope that I have given you a little taster of Henry's story and some of the advice that he had to offer... He seems like a genuinely nice guy, and to offer up his time for charity was just lovely!



Laura's dress is of course by House of Holland and you can check his new range online now!

7 comments Fashion

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OOTD: Swap Till You Drop

How cool is this setting? I took my DSLR out for a spin the other weekend and my sis kindly took these atmospheric shots... I LOVE how cloudy the sky is! What I don't love as much, is that it started hail stoning from NOWHERE and we got soaked!

One of the main things I love about blogging is finding a cool location and playing around with photography. I am very lucky to have my own amazing camera, but it's still tricky getting a good shot! I've never had a problem with having my photo taken, but it's definitely different "posing" for blog photos. I don't want every post to look the same, but it's very easy to stick to the same poses without realising! :-/

My outfit is made up of pieces that I got from our Rock On Ruby Clothes swap back in February! I LOVE my new hat (I have a slight hat obsession) which I got from Jen from EnglishRoseFromManc and my totally on trend denim pinafore dress, which I think was from Ashleigh from PrettyGirlRich. I teamed this with some Primark faves: My shoe boots, Striped top and knee high socks!

*This is definitely not a regular blog pose! ;-) But I saw my friend driving past and got a bit excited! Haha!

* So, I uploaded this pic of my legs THREE times and every time it looks fine and then I posted it and my legs turned orange...?? Not sure why! the mysteries of Blogger!

What do you think of my outfit from our Clothes Swap?! Has it made you want to get involved in a Clothes swap sesh?

If you have any tips for Blogger poses, do let me know in the comments below!

18 comments OOTD, Rock On Ruby

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