Swim Until You Can't See Land

Top: Forever21

Cardigan: Peacocks

Skirt: ASOS

Bag: Vintage

Shoes: Primark

An unintentional patriotic outfit from earlier in the week comes in handy when you need something to post on the royal wedding day. I'm not massively patriotic or interested in the royals but after years of fighting it, I really do love being British now and the hype of the wedding was quite contagious. I had managed to avoid most of it because we were so busy on set all week but I did manage to watch a bit of the wedding today with some friends. I think I've enjoyed all the memes and gifs popping up this evening more than the actual wedding though.

What were your thoughts on the wedding?

We've wrapped the film now and I'm going to put a little post together about the experience because a lot of you expressed an interest in hearing more. Once we'd wrapped I got this weird sad feeling because as much as I was happy it was all done, I really enjoy making films and to go back to revision and essays is not as exciting as being behind the camera, ordering people around and basically hanging out with a bunch of your friends for a solid three days. Oh well, I better get writing another one to get back to it.

Films To Note

I'm finally getting back on track with my regular features after my break. For this fortnights 'Films to Note' I was struggling to pick a theme until I realised what most of my favourite films, and books for the matter, are about. Coming of Age. Growing up and realising who you are. Finding your niche. Those films that show us the delicate part of life when someone is really discovering themselves. I'm a sucker for those films so here are five of my favourite coming of age films.

1. Whip It! (2009)

A Drew Barrymore Film

This film is such a winner for me. It has two of my girl crushes, Ellen Page and Drew Barrymore (who also directed), a great soundtrack and it's set in Austin, TX. It follows Bliss who is stuck in a dead end town with only her friends to keep her sane in the world of pageants, waitressing jobs and bullies. Until she discovers Roller Derby. A rough and tumble sport filled with alternative girls who aren't afraid to be themselves. Bliss soon becomes the team's star, Babe Ruthless, but it's not all plain sailing with obstacles of first love, lying to her parents and the small fact she's not actually old enough to be competing.

One for the times when you need a top up in your 'you can do anything you put your mind to' belief.

2. Nothing is Private/Towelhead (2007)

An Alan Ball Film
I've spoken about my love for Alan Ball before on this blog and in Nothing is Private he really lets his dark humour shine. Jasira is a young girl discovering herself and her sexuality which results in her being shipped off to live with her controlling Lesbanese father is the suburbs. The pair have a rocky relationship to say the least with his twisted views of womanhood clashing with her curious attitude towards sex. It's quite an open film that explores issues of religion, racism and sexuality that really pulls you in to the characters lives as Jasira finds herself floundering in the rules and standards set by those around her.

3. Submarine (2010)

A Richard Ayoade Film
Submarine is a true British gem. It follows 15 year old Oliver Tate as he faces the challenges of first love, first kiss and first realisation that his parents are unhappy. Hilarious, heart warming and wonderfully shot, Submarine explores the excitement and mystery of his relationship with Jordana while struggling to keep his parent's marriage from falling apart of the hands of their neighbour. It's a great coming of age story for everyone who's ever known young love or felt like their life was spinning out of their control.

4. Zombie Girl (2009)

A Justin Johnson and Aaron Marshall Film

This documentary follows the production of a small indie zombie movie being made in Austin where the filmmaker just happens to be 12. Emily wrote, directed and edited Pathogen all with the help of her mum at the young age of 12. She calls in all sorts of favours around town, turns a mass of extras into zombies in a local supermarket and sticks firmly by the rule that zombies don't run. I really identified with Emily as such a driven filmmaker and luckily, at no point does she cross over into arrogance for someone talented so young. Not a conventional coming of age story but one I'd definitely recommend. 

5. Garden State (2004)

A Zach Braff Film

I'm sure you're thinking I'm such a film student right now but I can't help but adore this film. When Andrew's mother dies, he returns home for the first time since his adolescence. Instead of more misery, Andrew finds love in the form of Sam, true friendship in his boyhood friends and freedom in his decision to stop taking his anti-depressants. His rocky relationship with his parents has haunted him but he decides to draw a line through the past and start living his life for himself. A romantic, touching and devastating film at each turn, Garden State is about truly accepting who we are and to start living for every moment. 

Sister Wife

Shirt: Vintage

Skirt: ASOS

Shoes: Primark

I call this my referee shirt. While playing a game of pool at the pub that evening someone on the opposing team commented that I should be refereeing the game instead of playing. We won so he's the fool! I like the monochrome mixed with the bright tights. If I could wear coloured tights everyday, I definitely would. I'm getting quite the varied collection in my drawers now.

I wore this outfit to a BBQ that I was suddenly put in charge of which resulted in dropping sausages on the grass and then onto the pub. Because I live in such a small town going to the pub results in seeing everyone you ever knew from school or socialising in one place. I bumped into old best friends, old boyfriends and people I wish I got to see more often.

Today was the first day of the film shoot for 'Segments' and it went great. We were shooting in this lovely cafe that has walls covered in clocks and vintage mirrors and comfy booths to chill out in. They were so friendly and let us have the run of the place while we were filming and filled us up with delicious breakfasts for lunch too. Fingers crossed tomorrow runs as smoothly.

Clothes, Friends, Photos

Dress: Tesco

Necklace: Modcloth via Tieka

Shoes: Urban Outfitters

Tights: ebay

I'm becoming more and more attracted to simple dressing. Less pulled to florals and more drawn to stripes, block colours and simplicity. Don't get me wrong, my style will remain revolving around floral and school girl inspiration, I'm just feeling like something new.

While I was at home the weather was beautiful which meant the neighbours were always in their garden which didn't lead to many blog photos. I took these in my kitchen on a particularly sunny day and you even get a glimpse of my mum's crazy decorating choices. A penguin picture isn't normal for most kitchens but different stokes for different folks and all that.

Hope everyone had a nice Easter and bank holiday. I spent Sunday having a big dinner then travelling back up to Leeds and today in the company of friends with Pimms. Truly cannot wait for summer to kick in permanently.

Out Takes Installment Five

It's been a while since I've shared my out takes with you so I thought I'd dig up some old classics to give you a laugh. The out takes are always plentiful when we take blog photos because I'm so awkward but we've nearly got it down now. I did say nearly...

Risking the camera and Mel's wrath

I think this was in response to Molly's direction 'be a deer'...

The face you get when your whole class is staring at you taking photos

Fighting nature's forces in the park

Some real wind tunnel hair

Ashamed at my own posing

Taking advantage of props

Inspiration For The Week

I'm heading back to Leeds today. I only really had two weeks at home this break and I'm actually feeling a bit uncomfortable about going back so soon. There was a lot of stuff I didn't get to do, people I didn't get to see but there's plenty of time for that in summer I suppose. The weather has been glorious this week and I can't wait to wear bare legs and sandals again.

My favourites of the week.

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Nice to be Nice

Top: H&M

Shorts: Zara

Cardigan: H&M

Shoes: Urban Outfitters

Mel hung around a few days after France so this meant the inevitable trip to Brick Lane aka my favourite place in London. We spent far too much money on vintage but justified it to ourselves as it was money left over from our trip. I managed to somehow buy even more clothes and shoes that I don't need including leather shorts that I adore. 

I've decided to head to London again before I go back to Leeds on Sunday. London is only a half an hour train journey from my small town and I have an unlimited oyster from when I worked at the bus company so I'm going to take advantage of it and do some of my favourite things. Filming starts on Tuesday for my film 'Segments' and it's going to be a full on hectic 3 day shoot but hopefully it'll be worth all the hard work. 

My head is all over the place at the moment trying to finish off to-do lists before I run out of time. Lots to do, lots to do.

Slow Dance to Soft Rock

Shell: Tesco

Skirt: Urban Outfitters

Cardigan: H&M

Shoes: Urban Outfitters

There are parts of Toulouse that have more of Spain vibe over all. 

On our last day in France we soaked up some culture with a walk along the canal leading to Les Abattoirs. Les Abattoirs is a modern art gallery in what used to be an abattoir and we managed to get in for a ridiculous 2 Euros each because it was so quiet. It was a scorcher of a day so we wandered down to the river after the gallery, lying in the sun next to a mini waterfall and all turning a lovely shade of pink. Or red if I'm honest.

We had to spend the rest of our afternoon hanging out in cafes, sampling coca lites all over the city and trying to cool down. After a quick pick up of macarons and chocolate for gifts, we headed back to the airport. Toulouse has one of the nicest airports I've ever seen, filled with modern art installations and so fresh, clean and airy. I've been in some horrid airports but Toulouse gets a big thumbs up from me.

I'd definitely recommend Toulouse for a short city break. It's small and quaint with enough to do if you look for it. There is an abundance of restaurants but if you're vegetarian, a more metropolitan city might be for you. The weather was lovely and I can strongly say I love the South of France.

A French Adventure

Untitled from chloe trayner on Vimeo.

I'm going to interrupt the posting of outfits to share the video from France, creatively named 'A French Adventure'. It was just really an exercise to learn to use my camera and capture some memories so don't expect too much amazing cinematography. The song is Train de Vie by Eli et Papillon.
Enjoy!
P.S The ending is my small attempt to include a hint of Lost In Translation in everything in my life.

Let You Break

Dress: Vintage

Lace shell: Tesco

Socks: ASOS

Shoes: Urban Outfitters

Due to the size of Toulouse, we decided to go on a day trip to a nearby town called Carcassonne while we were in France. It was only an hour and a bit by train there so we hopped on board, after some serious translation issues with collecting our tickets that involved us seeing a dog wearing a scarf, and went on our merry way. 

Carcassonne was a really pretty town with cobbled streets and quaint squares. There was a castle that we trekked up to (might be exaggerating with trek) which had amazing views all over the town. We ate crepes in the square and bought strawberries from the market. It was all in all a very french day. We spent the afternoon on a boat trip along the canal where I soaked up the sun and made our own entertainment because we couldn't understand a word of the heavily french accented tour guide. We finished our time there by laying next to the river, a repeated activity throughout the trip, before jumping on the train home. 

The outfit photos were taken outside a church that was stunning inside. Unfortunately in the group photo we only managed to capture scaffolding but take my word for it. I wore my staple floral vintage dress that I wear all the time but made it into what's becoming my staple school girl style with a lace top underneath and knee highs.

You Can Fight The Fire That's Inside Your Head

Top:H&M

Skirt: Topshop

Socks: ASOS

Shoes: Urban Outfitters

Cardigan: H&M

Rucksack: ASOS

Another thing I learnt from France was men will stare at you unashamedly if you wear knee high socks. This didn't stop me though and even wore them again on the trip. Day two in Toulouse was lovely and warm so out came the legs. I liked the decidedly 60s vibe to this outfit and it was perfect for a day of wandering, shopping and relaxing by the river in the sunshine.

Toulouse is quite a small city, despite being the fourth largest in France, and was strangely devoid of any tourists. We didn't see a single shop selling berets, much to my dismay, and most people only spoke miniscule english, if at all. This gave us a chance to flex our french conversational skills which led to many red cheeks when we forgot what we were meant to be saying half way through a sentence.

We found this wonderful carousel in one the squares that scattered Toulouse. We let go of any inhibitions and posed proudly in front of it, followed by more posing by a fountain and later even more posing on the Pont Neuf. I got my new camera just before leaving, literally two days before, so I was eager to try it out at every chance. I'm hoping to put together a little video from all the clips I shot so you'll hopefully have a nice french adventure sometime soon!

I Want Back The Years You Took When I Was Young

Dress: H&M

Cardigan: H&M

Shoes: Urban Outfitters

Lessons learnt from Toulouse, France:

• Anything sounds sexier in french
• Moustaches are still infinitely funny
• Baguettes everyday is a good staple diet (jambon et fromage is a winner)
• Don't expect the french to be accommodating to vegetarians
• Learning a few phrases will make you feel like a bilingual master
• I can actually pack efficiently
• It's fun to talk about things that no one around you will understand
• Toulouse on a Sunday is no fun if you're female
• You will fall in love with at least every typically french man that passes you on the street
• Macarons are tasty and addictive
• A gazillion photographs is obligatory for any trip
• French women will try and pimp their sons out to you if you tell them you live in London
• Three pales girls in the south of France heat will get sunburnt faces
• Toulouse has lots of nice knockers... on their doors
•  I don't think there's nothing wrong with a little bump 'n' grind!