Photoshoot madness!

For years now i've always wanted to do a photo shoot for Molls & Dolls Boutique and the past few weeks have been constant planning to do that. And let me tell you, planning a photoshoot seems a lot easier than it looks!! There are so many things that need to be considered - location, clothing, styling, fittings, models, make up, hair, poses and different shots. Luckily, i have a very talented group of people around me and when we all came together, we made an amazing team. The aim of the shoot was to feature the spring/summer collection fitting in with the brand as well as having a bit of fun! So here they are... 

Printed blazer - Minimum

Mint Dress - Minimum

Loungewear - VILA

Block dress - French Connection 

Long dress (left) - Minimum
Dress (right) - French Connection 

Long dress - Minimum

Daisy top - French Connection
Cardigan - Darling

Printed Blazer - Minimum
Shirt - VILA
Leather look leggings - VILA

Printed Blazer - Minimum
Jumper - VILA
Printed trousers - VILA

Long dress - Minimum 

The shoot went perfectly. The weather was amazing giving us beautiful lighting all day. After organising this for weeks, i decided on Ickworth House (Summerhouse) as my location setting however speaking to a National Trust receptionist, it wasn't possible for us to shoot there due to laws to protect the inside of the Summer House from the general public. So at 5:00pm on Saturday Evening, i was left with no location, 12 hours before we were supposed to shoot. As you can imagine, i was in complete panic mode! After ringing around desperately, i spoke to my best friends brother, Jordan and he suggested a beautiful country house B&B in Buxhall. Copinger Hall. After liaising with the lovely owner, Lisa, i was lucky enough to shoot there the next day. It was perfect and better than any location i could of wished for. Situated on beautiful grounds, Copinger Hall is the definition of perfect with its georgian decorated rooms, drawing room and dining room for you to relax in aswell as it's lovely hostess, Lisa. If you are looking somewhere local to stay, i would recommend Copinger Hall to anybody. Make a booking here! 

The shoot was a success! Thankyou to all my lovely models, Emily Gooderham, Rebecca Ridley and Hollie Hubbard. Eve Randall for the amazing make-up and Maisie Lee and Roberta Spurdens for helping us achieve this! 

A few behind the scenes photographs.. 

Lots of love,

Molly x

London baby!

Old Spitafields Market

If you know me well, you will know that i absolutely adore London. Thats why when i got the chance to go down for the day with my mum on a buying trip for Molls & Dolls new collection, i couldn't turn it down. It excites me more than any other place have been to. It's constant ability to make me buzz day and night is the reason why i want to move down there as quick as i can. A lot of people have warned me off living in London, and although they are talking from experience, i feel as though i need to experience myself first before i disregard it. Plus if you can't do it when your young... when can you?!

First of all we walked to Old Spitafield's Market. While walking around browsing at some of the stalls i actually felt a sense of sadness and couldn't help but realise that Old Spitafields Market which is famously know for its hustle and bustle and trading of Vintage and Handmade goods had lost its traditional meaning and has fallen into the typical market category of selling wholesale tacky clothing for cheap prices!

My sadness for Old Spitafields traditional values was shortlived as i set my eyes on the MAC shop. This is my favourite MAC shop as the staff are always so friendly and helpful and more than happy to assist you with the trying on of their products! As you will not be surprised to know we walked out with several items ranging from Lipsticks, lipliners, foundations and concealers (naughty!) After spending a good hour in the MAC shop we decided to refresh ourselves with a Chicken Burger, chips and Coke at the Gourmet Burger Kitchen. Beauuuutiful!

Mac Purchases

Gourmet Burger Kitchen, YUM! 

After feeling refreshed and rather stuffed we hit the VILA showroom. My oh my. So many beautiful clothes! I absolutely adore buying for collections but it is one of the hardest jobs ever!! Especially if you are into the majority of trends and like pretty much everything, like me. A particular print that caught my eye was this neon floral that was being carried through into several different pieces across the collection, Dress, trousers, top, blazer. Like i stated earlier, being into pretty much every trend makes choosing which pieces to buy 10x harder, especially as we only have a little shop and can't afford to pick every piece. After umming and arring for the duration of time we spent in the showroom on these two pieces, we ended up going for the dress because of its commercial value. Parting with the trousers made me want to cry therefore as SOON as they come out in the shops, i am getting a pair straight away!!! 

The Winner!

"Love at first sight"

Now onto the French Connection showroom in Camden. A beautiful showroom, full of simplicity and elegance, matching the brand very well. 

Choosing the pieces for a brand like French Connection is 10x harder than other brands such as Vila as the price points are very different. Although Vila is one of our best selling brands, its cost and retail price isn't overly expensive where as French Connection mainly have more expensive pieces. 

While guiding us through the new collections, Polly, our FC rep told us that the inspiration for the new collection had sprung from the Russian Winter Olympics 2014. As we browsed, the Russian themes started to shine through the clothing, just by using the traditional colours of Red, white and blue. These are two of my favourite pieces that we picked simply because of how unique they both are. The jumper is a fairly basic knit but the fur sleeves gave it an edge and made it stand out. Before deciding on which clothes to place in the shop, we have to go through the thought process of - Will it fit into to our customer base? 'Who can we see wearing it?' 'Is the retail price too extravagant?' The skater style of this dress is one of French Connections classics'. It gets repeated year after year because of its ability to suit many ladies body shapes and its makes them a lot of money.

Scroll Down for pictures.

Jumper

Dress

If you have any questions on buying, don't be afraid to ask! :-)

Prints & Collars!

Sorry i've been so slack with my blog posts the past couple of weeks, its been manic to say the least! I haven't done any outfit posts yet simply because I'm normally rubbish at documenting what i'm wearing because I always seem to be in a rush out the door!  However this week I've been making a conscious effort to take a few snaps which I've been posting onto my Instagram, give it a follow! @mollyawils

As per usual, a ridiculous amount of funky prints and collars on show this week, guilty! I just absolutely love the collar/jumper trend and as you can see, i've well and truly jumped onto the bandwagon with this one.

1. I wore this outfit to work last Saturday with my trusty Black Leigh Jeans and my new favourite things in the whole world - The black snakeskin trainer pumps from Topshop! (scroll down to see picture) I got so many compliments on my shirt which is from my mum's boutique where i also work. The best part is, i got it on Uniform, result! I thought i'd go neutral with my lips which tied in well with my candy coloured coat from New Look which i featured in my first blog post. All in all, i love this outfit! 

2. After a fairly unsuccessful hungover shopping trip last Sunday with my two best friends, we went out on a whim and took a look in Tk Maxx, after my friend originally picked up the paisley print shirt, i decided that i wouldn't mind trying it on too and i loved it, especially for £12! I layered it up with a cropped jumper for extra warmth as i was heading into London that day to buy the Autumn/Winter '14 collection from Vila & French Connection. Teamed with my Topshop Mom jeans also. 

3. I wore this outfit out to dinner with my boyfriend and his family last night! This French Connection Zebra Print tunic is my favourite thing i've brought this year. As i'm still a bit obsessed with the monochrome trend and its printed, it's perfect for me! I know your all probably thinking, £105?!?! I'll let you in on a little secret, it wasn't £105 to me... and no i didn't steal it! Last summer, i went on a buying trip to French Connection to buy this years spring/summer collection for the boutique. This little beauty was sitting on the rails and i just had to have it, therefore i ordered an extra size 10 just for me which means that i only payed the cost price which was something like £50. Perks of the job and all that! Teamed up with my trusty Primark shirt underneath, fur gilet, and necklace that my boyfriend's lovely mother got me for christmas, this has quickly become one of my favourite outfits! 

4. Me and my boyfriend are always out and about, but the past couple of weeks we have well and truly been out and about! I can't remember the last time we have had a Friday/Saturday night in front of the TV together, but i wouldn't have it any other way! After gaining a distinction in my project at college, we decided to celebrate by going to one of my favourite restaurants, Ask. Which was YUM! And to the Cinema. I hate the term 'Date Night' but unfortunately there's no other words to describe what this outfit was for. I have had these Topshop trousers since last May, they were £40 and i have well and truly got my wear out of them. That is another thing i can't get enough of... printed trousers! I'm going to feature all my masses of trousers in my next blog post. After getting these Topshop shoes a couple of hours before, i HAD to wear them. Good job they went with my trousers! 

What have you all been wearing this week?