Of how I went to London to shop and ended up meeting J.K. Rowling

Omg, I haven't posted anything in a month. I'm a terrible blogger!
But I've got some excuses: my last exam (which took place on September 18th and drained all my energies until I finally got my grade), moving house, my trip to London... I'll just talk about the latter because the move and the exam are very boring subjects, and I'm glad at least one of them is over.
So! I went to holiday. I took it as a reward for finishing the exams, but the truth is my mother had noticed I really, really needed a break: my last trip was three years ago, but it lasted three days (including the flights), I had to do everything in a hurry and I didn't enjoy it at all. These last two years have been... well. Let's say "tough" would be the understatement of the century. University was the least of my problems, but it still took all of my time, and all I had been doing lately was studying locked in my room. I held on and tried to think "it's ok, come on, this is the last effort, it's going to be over soon" and eventually it was over, but I was so tired and I so needed to go away from my everyday routine.
I hadn't even realize how much I'd needed it until I was in this amazing city.

Aside from the usual places one sees when they go to London (which I wasn't really interested in, since I'd already seen them years ago, but it was my boyfriend's first time in London) I had planned a very detailed scheduled made of bookshops, manga shops, games shops and other nerdy stuff.

I didn't take pictures of all of them; too bad because the Orc's Nest was worth a pic, but I'll keep its memory in my heart u.u

Foyles

Just so that you can get its HUGENESS, what you're seeing above is *one* of the paranormal romance shelves. I was in awe.



Tokyo Toys

This is just the entrance; if I should post all the pictures of the inside, there would be no space left for anything else.

I couldn't buy it because it was so expensive, instead I bought Homura's Soul Gem, which you can see below together with a Sailor Moon peluche and Orihime Inoue's pins.

Sherlock Holmes Museum, 221b Baker Street

My horrible handwriting XD I was writing in a hurry on my boyfriend's back.

Of course, the reference is to BBC series Sherlock, of which I'm a big fan, but not in that slashy omg they're_so_gonna_have_sex way.
Oh, and I didn't have the time to go and see the Crown's jewels, which I deeply regret because I wanted to stand in front of it with a note saying "and honey, you should see me in a crown!".

Starbucks.

I bet Starbucks isn't that big of a deal to pretty much all of you, is it :D?

Well, sadly, it is to me: we don't have Starbucks in Italy.

Well, of course, we have actual cappuccino and caffellatte (and we pronounce these words correctly XD), but what do I care if I can't have blueberry muffins...?

Camden Town

Sweet mother of goths.
This is just Camden High Street, but you should have seen the markets. Like, I can't even. I was about to literally cry from beauty. There was a Burleska shop. I got to try the Mollflander dress. There was a Spiral shop T_T and there was goth stuff just everywhere T__T! I mean, seriously, how can people in London do anything other than shopping...?

This is what I bought from Camden. It's funny: of all the amazing stuff I saw, I bought a few super tacky Spiral tops. Well, actually I'd been eyeing the one on the right for months. And the other one, I don't know, I bought it because of the super strong gay content. I guess I just felt extremely supportive that day - plus I love Victoria Frances.

On the left, lace corseted hold-ups. Too bad I have to wait until next summer to wear them T_T

And on the right, tights with a pentagram. Because I'm a piano player.

Bracelet <3

52 Tavistock Square, Bloomsbury

Virginia Woolf's Memorial in Tavistock Square, Bloomsbury.
Apparently her house in London has been tore down and now in its place there's a hotel. I don't have any good pics of her former house or of the park, sorry :/

Forbidden Planet

I can't really describe this place, which is a lot wider than you can see from the pictures.

Look what I found there:

And Willow's not even my favourite character; it would be more accurate to say she's the one I hate the most of the whole cast (as a character; my crush for Alyson Hannigan isn't a secret :D) but I would have still killed for this coldcast.

I didn't buy it, of course. 235£: it's too much in pounds, let alone what it would have cost me in euros. *wipes a tear*

But I got off with these. A bottle of Tru Blood and a Buffy poster. I'm not very satisfied with the latter because of two reasons: first of all, there's Riley in my birth month. I mean, Riley. Of all the characters. If it were Willow, I would have said, fine, I hate her, but she's still a hell of a character. I don't hate Riley but he's the mehest character from the mehest season of the series. And second!, there weren't neither Faith nor Angel. I can understand Faith (well... can I? Really? When Oz gets a month all of his own? And frickin' Dawn has to share hers with her sister...?), but Angel...? How can they even think of a Buffy calendar without the love of her life, the one she could never forget, the only one who - ooook, I've been watching Buffy recently and I need to gain the control on my feelings back.

So, one afternoon I went to Oxford Street and I saw all of those shops other bloggers talk about all the time, like Topshop, Primark, River Island, Bershka, Claire's... none of which I can find in Italy. I wouldn't care this much if it wasn't for Topshop. I just fell in love with it.

Unfortunately, this is all I came home with from there.

And yes, I've just made a big jump on the nu goth bandwagon - but hey, I'm still quite far from hipster goth and, god forbid, pastel goth.

I have to say that the latest trends - you know, crosses and skulls and spikes in every shop downtown, not just in the alternative ones anymore - allow me to wear something that's close to my style even in my everyday life. Something that I couldn't do before - I was doomed to choose between a full goth outfit and just plain, boring black stuff.

It should also be said that when I was younger I was a purist and an elitist, obsessed with that not-goth-enough shit, but that's because I'd met many people who had that attitude towards me, so I just felt like I had to live up to someone's expectations. And even if there had been these things in the regular shops, I'd have refused to buy them, and I would have despised those who would wear them.

Like, at the time I would NEVER EVER EVER have worn Doc Martens. Now, instead, look at what I bought for my everyday life <3:

I mean, these boots saved me from my New Rocks. I would never have even imagined how much a pair of boots could hurt my feet.

That's me on my bed surrounded by half a dozen plasters. And a Warhammer Fantasy starter box.

By the way; the latest rock-chic fashion has finally landed to Italy, after a year of spikes and Jeffrey Campbells all over lookbook. I had felt so happy when I saw creepers and JC and the new limited edition of Doc Martens on a window in my town, and then I went to London and figured out that those things were everywhere, and on everyone's feet.

I mean, fashion in London is so great. Even the clothes you find in markets or in the malls have rock or vintage or retro details, and everyone dresses differently from all the other people. This just doesn't happen in my country, despite being known for the fashion and the shoes... it's sad to admit it, but abroad they've gone much, much further than us.

Whenever I ran into italian people in London, I could tell they were from my country for two reasons:

1)They were yelling and making stupid comments on people and being loud, rude and disrespectful;

2)They were all_dressed_the same. A jumper, a jeans and a pair of Converse/random sneakers. Maybe even quite expensive jumpers, jeans and sneakers, but still... everyone was the perfect copy of his/her peer. That was so sad. And hardly fashionable.

Here'sa few outfits I pulled off during the trip. The only thing that bothers me is that I could only bring a pair of shoes and I had to go for the stompy boots, which weren't exactly the best match for my lacy stuff, but I couldn't take more than five steps in my TUK victorian boots to save my life.

And finally... the J.K. Rowling corner.
I'll start with a picture of me on the 9 3/4 binary :D

Which really drew a line in my life, before which I just thought I "liked Harry Potter", and then, after making an ass of myself at King's Cross in the rush hour, I realized the harsh truth that I'm a Potterhead.
Anyway.
I knew, before leaving, that J.K. Rowling had written a new book and that it was going to come out on September 27th. I had checked if she was going to be at some bookshop to sign the copies, but she wasn't.
When I got to London, though, I had this great idea of checking the newspapers. And that's how I found out that she was going to sign copies at the Southbank Centre on thursday night, after an event which I couldn't attend because tickets were needed (and they had run out of them on August 3rd, the day they came out). But nothing suggested that I couldn't go there later and have my copy signed.
So I went there. The Southbank centre is a really big place, so I asked a few guys for help. They happened to be J.K. Rowling fans too, so together we managed to find out where the place was and went there.
There was an endless queue and they told us that we needed a ticket, and that we couldn't buy any. We were meters away from her and we couldn't reach her.

My boyfriend suggested that we joined the queue and stayed in the last places, but it was ten p.m., the queue was long and the tube stopped working at 11:30 p.m., so I decided to try my luck. Afterall, the newspapers didn't say you needed a ticket for the signing.

[Almost there and crossing my fingers]

And eventually, the guy who checked your tickets and opened your book at the right page told me that there was no need for tickets to get your book signed. And kids, this is the story of how I met J.K. Rowling.

That's me, shivering and babbling and repeatedly saying "thank you, thank you, thank you". She looked a bit cross to be honest XD. Maybe that's because I pretty much didn't say anything, while the girl before me had given her a present. But I hadn't even thought about it, and even if I had, what could I possibly give the richest woman in England...?

So I just took my autographed book and went away, with my trembling hands and my shaking knees.

And the funniest part of it is that in the previous days I'd never shut up about being in London and not having met a single celebrity.

Talk about celebrities, huh :D?

And that's pretty much it (well, if you don't count that I almost didn't leave because my ID wasn't valid in the UK, or that my boyfriend's dad almost got us all killed in a car accident on the way to the airport, or that my dad hadn't noticed that he hadn't paid the hotel and we almost got broke in London, and I still feel I should say something about the amazing food retail chains in London, but maybe in another entry, this one is getting infinite).

I'm definitely glad I went there. And, of course, I suggest you all to go to this wonderful (no... brilliant!) city.
And I promise the next entry won't take this long :D!
Have a nice day ^^!

Haul

Hi everyone :)
Yesterday I took an afternoon off the study to go to the mall and buy some of the make-up related stuff I've recently discovered I need if I want to get a good look.
Unfortunately (for my wallet, but not for my wardrobe) my boyfriend suggested we could have a walk downtown, and I said yes, thinking "oh, I already have everything I need on my wishlist, plus I've already checked Zara and H&M and there was nothing worth spending money on, so I'm safe".
Well, I came home with no money in my wallet. The last shirt, I had to buy it with my credit card :'D.

Here's a picture of the haul:

(But, see? A book...! Buying books is a totally guilt-free shopping!)

This time I went for everyday clothes. Which I needed. For real! XD

As I said some posts ago, I tend to buy super fancy stuff that I can only wear when the weather's hot, and trust me, there aren't enough weekends in a summer to wear all the frilly lacy dresses I can buy in a year time. I even begged my boyfriend to stop me from buying that kind of stuff, but he won't do it, I know that, because it sort of amuses him the way I just lose it when I come face to face with a black lace thing.

By the way, in chronological order: the make-up.

From left to right, clockwise:

1. Kiko Brush Eyes 202 (I usually don't mention the names of the brands of the stuff I show here, but, well, you can see it, there's no point in hiding it). I needed a brush for eyeshadow. I already have an excellent blender (not by Kiko), which I paid good money for, but the brush I used to put on the eyeshadow was quite lame and half destroyed. So I thought that maybe if I bought a new one my make-ups will look just like the ones in youtube tutorials :°D

2. Kiko Precision Eye Pencil (white). The idea was using it on the eye outline to make them look bigger.

3. Kiko Colour Sphere (pearl white). Apparently some shimmery white in the internal area of my eye opens them up. Also it looks good with my eyes colour, which is some sort of grey; they're affected by internal heterochromia, so it's not easy to find a good match for their shade(s).

4. Make up forever Eyeshadow (red). To be precise, I bought it last tuesday, at Sephora. I've been looking for a red eyeshadow for a year at least. I wanted to achieve this look:

Yes, I'm a bit on a loop with this Taylor Momsen thing, just be patient, it'll pass :°D.

5. Kiko False Eyelashes 01 Natural. My first false eyelashes! It was about time. For some reason, every time I mentioned that I wanted to buy a pair, my boyfriend went all "oh no, why would you put those things on your eyes, your lashes are just fine, see?, they're beautiful!". He's so sweet, but honestly I don't get why he would be so concerned about it. It's not like I would wear them every day :°D (it'd be quite an expense...!).

Unluckily, they'd run out of the eyeshadow primer I was looking for. Which was probably the thing I needed the most. They said it's going to come back, though.

Let's skip the part where I see some stunning burgundy red platform heels at Tally Weil and the shop assistant tells me they're coming back next week, and --- no wait, you have to see them.

I mean. I can't even.

Their colour is actually darker, way darker than that. The pin-up that's in me screamed with joy. (Always on the inside.) I've wanted shoes like these for years.

I had found them at Gucci but, you know. Tiny wee bit expensive. I later found something like that at another store, on sale, for 50€, but still expensive, at least for some shoes that I'd wear very seldom and that, most of all, I wasn't able to walk on.

These ones are 35€, that's fair enough. I swear that if I manage to take five steps on a row on these things, they will be mine.

But let's see the things that are already mine. Clothes <3!

I saw this one above in a shop I really like but I don't buy stuff from very often. But when I saw this one, omg, it was love.

Last time I'd spotted a cutie in that shop I waited a week to come back and ask about it, and they had run out of it. So this time I went inside, just to make sure, and I found out it was the last one and, surprisingly (I'm never this lucky) it was exactly my size. It wasn't even expensive. Instant buy.

(I'll wear it tonight for a night with my beloved cousin Melissa)

Aww, this one <3 you can't see it very well. It's made of some very cheap lace XD and the skull is all, like, scratched (omg, I wouldn't know how to describe it my own language, let alone english XD)

I'll post an outfit picture featuring this shirt, by the way. It really is lovely.

A bow belt <3!

I can't believe how much time it took me to find one. No, seriously, they seem to be everywhere but where the hell do they sell them?

And in fact this is not exactly how I would have wanted it; it's made of cotton instead of, i.e., satin or lace. But considering the price I got it for, it was definitely a lucky find: when I noticed it was on sale and only cost 1,99€ (don't you hate it when they do this? I mean, you don't need to make it look cheaper, I mean, it costs 2€, how much less can you reasonably spend for a belt?!), my eyes were glowing.

There were only XS/S sizes left, and I'm an S/M, but since I'm planning to wear it on the waist an not on the hips, it fits perfectly.

You can't see it very well (damn camera!), but I'll take a picture of it too. I already know which frilly dress I can match it with <3.

And, last but not least, the book!

The luckiest find of yesterday's haul.

Seriously: the Mammut series is usually quite expensive, each book's around 20-25€. But they've lowered the price, and this one was just 9€; plus this month its publishing house had put a 25% discount on its books, so I only paid *checks the receipt* 7,43€.

I mean: the whole work of Francis Scott Fitzgerald, for only 7, 43€. That's crazy. I nearly cried XD!

The thing is, I haven't been able to read anything since I first spoke with my supervisor, who gave me so many books to read for my dissertation that even if I'm not reading them I'd feel guilty reading anything else. So, despite being actually quite the reader (and my aNobii bookshelf can prove it...!), these last months I've been very ashamed of myself.

I physically *suffer* every time someone takes me to a bookshop, because all those books and I can't even look at them because I know, I know I'd end up buying them. (And this post is the non-living proof that I don't have control over my actions when I see a book I'm interested in). Also, when I try to look away I look like one of those people who get into libraries because they're forced by the people they're with, so they don't even take a look on the stuff they're surrounded by because they're so grossed out by literature they won't even give it a try.

Anyway: I've meant to read something by Fitzgerald for a long time, and I'm glad I found it at a price so low because I would have spent more money even if I bought just one of his novels. I've been curios since I read Zelda's Save Me the Waltz, plus I don't want to turn 25 without having read The Great Gatsby.

That's not it, to be honest, I have some stuff traveling from all over the world to come to me, but I'll show that to you once I actually put my hands on it.

Well!, I hope you liked my purchases ^^. And if you've ever tried some of the products I bought at Kiko's, I'd be very pleased if you told me how you found them and whether you liked them or you were disappointed :) other people's opinions are more than welcome!

Have a nice week you all ;)!

Liesbter award and Obituary challenge

Howdy!
It's been a while (again), I know; thing is I have my last exam on tuesday and I barely have the time to breathe, let alone blogging T_T
In the meantime, since I don't have any outfit pictures, I'll answer to the questions of Madame Mari Mortem, who tagged me for the Liebster Award, and I'll do my obituary for the Obituary Challenge (thanks to Dani Death Biscuit for the tag).
I'll write my tags at the end, they're for both the award and the challenge :D!

1. If you could live anywhere and be anything, what and where would it be?
... I'm feeling quite the cliche by telling you this, but: I'd like to be a writer and live in Manhattan. I swear this wasn't inspired by Carrie Bradshaw.

2. Have you seen any kind of "wonder of the world" attraction, and if so which? ( ex. Grand Canyon, Northern Lights, Eiffel Tower, Stonehenge...)
Uhm, yes, I've seen the Grand Canyon and the Eiffel Tower. Funny thing is I have the Colosseum five hours away from home but I haven't seen it yet.

3. You're a chef-- what's today's special?
Ugh, I suck at cooking. But I can make you a delicious pasta with tomato sauce! And a lot of parmesan...!

4. In the past month (not "ever"), what was one limited item you wanted SO badly but ended up not buying and deeply regret that decision?

5. You just won a $500 gift card, where is it for and what will you buy there?
A bookshop, of course. I'd exhaust my aNobii wishlist.

6. How do you resolve a conflict? "Make love not war, man" or "Let's find the happy median" or "DEMS FIGHTN WORDS!!!1!"
Oh no, conflicts are just not for me. The time when I wasted time on getting angry with people has *gone*; I just put a distance between me and that person, always maintaining courtesy.

7. You just won backstage passes-- what show/band are they for?
Well, I'd say the Muse right now because some weeks ago I found out that they're coming in my country on november but there weren't any tickets available.

8. Au naturel or Eau de toilette (no perfume or perfume)? If you chose perfume, what is your favorite scent or scent combo?
No perfume :/ I always forget to put it on... also, I don't like smelling scents all around me.

9. When you die will you be buried or cremated? And during your funeral will your casket be open or closed, and why?
Omg. I've never really thought about that. I guess I don't really care, except that I DON'T want a catholic service. I absolutely don't want a priest to speak at my funeral. As regards the rest, they can do whatever they please with my body, as long as they bury me in my black lace frilly clothes.

10. What's your idea of a romantic or awesome day out?
I'm not really the candlelight dinners&walk on the beach kind of person... I don't know, the best thing I could think of right now is: boyfriend, sofa, blanket, hot chocolate and endless episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer :D.

11. If you could learn an ancient fighting style, from which culture would you pick?
I wouldn't know, I'm not into fighting and I don't know any styles :/ but if I had to fight for some reason, I'd totally go for a good old machine gun :D

Aaaand here are my questions:
1. Who's your favourite artist?
2. What genre do you prefer to read?
3. What is your life's primary goal?
4. What do you think is your biggest skill?
5. Can you play a musical instrument? Which one, and how long have you played it?
6. Who were you in high school: the cheerleader, the jock, the nerd, the goth, all of these things together XD...?
7. How is your perfect outfit? Describe it or just post a picture :)
8. Do you think of yourself as of an introvert or an extrovert person?
9. Which is your favourite cake?
10. If you were a fictional character, who would you be?
11. If you could solve one problem in the world, which one would it be?

And then, the Obituary Challenge! Thanks to Dani Deathbiscuit for tagging me :).

The Rules:

1.  Link back to whoever tagged you.
2. Put these rules in your tag
3. Write an obituary about yourself (it can be as funny or as serious as you like)
4. Write a paragraph or two (or more if necessary) in length.
5. You may tag up to 10 people, and be sure to link them.
6. Have fun, because creative writing is one of the greatest joys in life!

My Obituary:

"Shannon Rutherford, age 24, died at one p.m. in her house, while trying to cook french fries for her father and her friend: they tried in vain to rescue her from the blaze that had risen from the pan, but unfortunately it was too late. Her body has been taken to the Xxxxx Hospital morgue; her mortuary chapel will be open from 10:00 a.m. of thursday, September 6th, until the beginning of the service which is taking place at 11:00 a.m.

She will be buried in her favourite corset, tutu and fishnet stockings, according to her will which she expressed in her very last blog entry. Since she was an exam away from graduation, the rector of the University of Xxx has decided to reward her with a posthumous degree in Linguistic and Cultural Mediation.

She will be remembered for accomplishing absolutely nothing in her life, but having a really good taste in clothing."

Ok: it took me HALF AN HOUR to write this XD.

Btw it actually happened some years ago: the blaze was one and a half meters high, I burnt the whole kitchen and almost got myself killed. Funny thing is that I've never thought about that as of a life-threatening experience; I always tell this at parties.

Tagged People:

Dani Death Biscuit

Madame Mari Mortem

Sandrine

Okashi Laura

Violette B.

Sary Walrus

The Cemetery Dreamer

Lynoire

Laura Morrigan

Lesthi