The Coat Edit | Zafira
I’m back baby!
So, it’s been a while since my last post and I feel like I’ve started a lot of posts like that but life just gets in the way.
Anyway I’m back for good this time and for this post, I’ve compiled some of my favourite coats to wear since the temperature has dropped all of a sudden. As I’m writing this actually, it’s been snowing for the last couple of hours so I know this post is very apt for right now.
If you follow me on Instagram, you’ll have seen a few of these before but here are a few of my favourite coats to wear at the minute.
THE BIG FAT COSY ONE
It feels fitting to put this first because 1.it’s my most recent coat and purchase in general and 2. it’s probably the biggest coat I’ve ever owned.
I desperately needed something oversized and warm because the rest of my coats (as you’ll see) are lovely but in terms of practicality, they’re not the best for this time of year where we’re hit with wind storms and snow.
This is from M&S which I feel like in my head I’ve somehow classed as a middle aged lady store and the place I’d once go to buy my school uniform but recently, some stuff at M&S has topped things I’ve seen at places like Zara and H&M. The quality is amazing and the pricing too which shocked me a little because this coat was priced a lot cheaper than the Zara version of this that everyone seems to own.
This coat style is perfect because it’s in trend every year. I’ve been trying to buy things that I know I’ll wear for a long time and that I know will last and this coat definitely will.
You can buy this here.
THE LONG LEATHER TRENCH
This might just be my favourite coat ever … And I bought it for £9.99 at TK Maxx.
It’s from the brand JCL which I’ve never heard from but the RRP was around £80 so with it obviously being the deal of a lifetime, I picked up and I think it was my best purchase of 2020 or maybe of all time.
I get so many compliments wearing this and I just feel so amazing wearing it. It feels modestly sultry? And the way it blows in the wind when I’m walking is the ego boost I need everyday.
I love styling this with really feminine outfits such as a dress like the pictures above or doing an all black outfit also feels super cool.
It’s the best coat to add a little something to your outfits. I could just be wearing a pair of jeans and a plan white shirt and this coat would top the outfit off like a cherry on top of a sundae.
Also, this coat plus my Vagabond Edwina boots are a combination one could only dream about.
This coat isn’t available anymore but here are some extra cute alternatives:
PLT Oversized Faux Leather Trench
Misspap Missé Leather Look Longline Trench Coat
THE BASIC TRENCH
I don’t think you can say you have a decent coat collection without having at least one camel brown trench coat in it.
This is actually a very very old trench from Mango that I bought during my first year of uni and I love how slouchy and big it is. I’d like to say I dress quite modestly so when it comes to coats, I do like something that covers me up pretty well and this definitely does that.
If you’ve been following me on Instagram, you’ll know I just started painting a ridiculous amount of flowers all of this. My goal was to have it done by November but uni life got in the way (as always) and I’ve put it on the back burner for a bit. Hopefully, it’ll be done by spring if we’re lucky to get one in the UK and it will be the perfect spring trench.
Make sure you follow my Instagram to see the behind scenes of this coat and other projects.
This isn’t available anymore, but here are some very similar alternatives:
ASOS Noisy May Drop Shoulder Trench Coat
Stradivarius Long Flowing Trench Coat
Monki Hilde Trench Coat
THE smart ONE
I’m going to be honest, I forget this coat exists sometimes and I beat myself up anytime I rediscover it in my coat wardrobe again because it’s such a good coat.
This is a vintage Ralph Lauren Checkered wool-blend blazer coat that I picked up many years ago at the Thrift Shop near Piccadilly Gardens. I think it only cost around £12 which is so amazing for this style and quality of coat.
I remember it originally had shoulder pads so I knew this was old. I had to take those out though being a broad shoulder gal and then had it dry cleaned and then she was ready for the streets.
It’s a such a great formal coat, like for interviews and events. Sometimes it even makes me feel like a mom or a Julia Roberts character from the 80s or 90s and there’s something so uplifting about that.
Here are some great replicas/alternatives for this lovely coat:
ZARA Quilted Checkered Overshirt
Abercrombie & Fitch Wool Blend Blazer
ZARA Wool Blend Blazer with Elbow Patches
THE TWEED ONE
This might just be my most worn coat ever. It’s been through so much, it’s been washed a good 30 times in it’s short time with me but I love it so much. It’s become a sort of comfort blanket at this point and I adore it.
My mum however, hates this coat lol. It has so many pockets so whenever I’m running errands, those pockets are filled to the brim and she says I look so boxy and chubby but for me it’s so incredibly convenient to have that many pockets.
I love the colours, it has a bit of brown so it’s super ideal for this time of year and goes very well with these brown trousers I’ve been living in recently.
This was one of many lockdown purchases so it isn’t available anymore, but here’s some very similar coats:
Mango Tweed Jacket
Sister Jane Tweed Jacket
That’s all the coats I have for you today but if you want to see anymore clothing edits please let me know.
Thanks for reading!
What I Wore This Week | Zafira
Hey!
So it’s been a while, like a real while. I think my last blog post was in November which is shocking because I’m usually semi-consistent with posting on here.
But sometimes, life gets a little too much, I’m in my final year of uni plus just the general effects of living through a p-word in your early 20s when you’re supposed to be out living your best life kinda hits you sometimes.
However, I’ve finally found my motivation and a good balance between everything going on in my life and I’m back with some exciting stuff.
Today I want to start off a new series called ‘What I Wore This Week’. Over on my Instagram, a lot of you were into my OOTD posts on my stories so I thought I’d make it into an official thing by compiling them on here into a blog post with some better quality pictures.
There’s nothing I love more than getting overdressed for a day of doing nothing but wearing my mask, washing my hands, and staying inside.
Here are 5 of my outfits from last week!
(also i’ve edited these like i’m in a catalog from the 90s/00s, enjoy)
MONDAY
I’m the biggest advocate of wearing skirts at home purely because of how flowy and freeing they feel. It’s way too cold to be wearing skirts out in this weather for me so wearing them around the house makes me feel like I’m putting them to use.
This shockingly is actually a midi skirt, but on my 5ft 2 (maybe 3) body, it’s become a full-length skirt. I’ve paired it with a simple black velvet top and my favourite cardigan from Zara. It’s very Chanel-esque which is probably why I adore it so much.
If I were to be leaving the house, I’d most certainly be wearing these heeled boots from ASOS that I would normally be wearing on the daily. They’re extremely comfy for heeled boots, I feel like I could walk miles in these.
TUESDAY
I feel like Tuesdays are always such a meh day. I can’t remember the last time I had a fun Tuesday. Because of this, I kept my outfit pretty casual and cosy since it's either raining, windy or snowing outside pretty much every day recently.
Zara has completely wowed me in the cardigan and jumper region as of lately. They have such an incredible range featuring so many House of Sunny inspired pieces.
This cropped blue fluffy cardigan is worn at least once a week. Considering it’s cropped, it’s super warm. The fur is detachable which I love and it’s just so pretty. It’s a complete embodiment of early 00s fashion.
I’ve paired this with a simple black turtleneck and to further achieve that early 00s look, my Juicy Couture velour bottoms. These bottoms are one of the best investments I made in 2020. They’re so warm, I can’t seem to leave my house without them on. And the best part is that the pockets have zippers. I don’t think I’ve ever felt so much security and practicality in a pair of women’s trousers before.
WEDNESDAY
Something about Wednesday’s just absolutely drains the life out of me. It’s hump day, I feel extra lazy so I usually gravitate to a simpler outfit like this.
These are all my time favourite corduroy trousers I picked up at Monki a while ago and they’re one of the best pair of pants I think I’ve ever bought due to how soft they are and how well they’ve worn over time.
I love this shade of red too, I don’t wear a lot of red often because I feel too bold but this is definitely more of a burgundy and with a black turtleneck, I feel like the Parisian Instagram influencer we’re all secretly dying to be.
THURSDAY
To pick myself up after Wednesday’s slump of a day, on Thursday I wore a dress I had made a few months ago.
There’s something so incredibly pretty about this vintage toile de jouy material. I want everything in my house upholstered in this material and I think eventually, I would love to make some more pieces with this material.
I love a puffy sleeve on a simple dress, it’s so easy to style and always looks effortlessly put together.
I’ve paired this with some jeans from the Gap because I’m on a mission to bring back jeans with dresses like it’s 2006 again.
(P.S I’ve made an Instagram for stuff I’ve made and will maybe sell soon! You can follow me here.)
FRIDAY
Yay it’s Friday! (the days are meaningless this means nothing) Obviously, I have to be a little extra and funky to prepare for the oh so very wild weekend ahead.
This jacket from Sava London is so stunning. It’s beautifully crafted and I adore wearing it. It’s part of their Kantha collection where the pieces have this traditional stitching all over them.
I love this method because my grandma would stitch blankets with so many different designs with the Kantha stitch so wearing this jacket feels so special and nostalgic.
I’ve paired it with my favourtie favourite brown leather trousers from Zara. They are admittedly a little too big for me but I love them nonetheless.
That’s all I have for this week! Thanks for reading and if you like these kinds of posts them let me know.
The Best Accounts on Instagram This Week | #1 | Zafira
Hi!
I guess this is my first actual content worthy post on my new site which is so exciting (for me anyway). Today I thought I’d do something I used to do a lot over on my Instagram Stories a lot a few months ago which was a weekly round up of my favourite accounts on Instagram that week. I love doing it because I think it’s great sharing accounts with people that deserve their work to be shared and it’s nice to support your fellow artists out there.
If you want me to make this a weekly thing then let me know, I’d be more than happy to!
These are my favourite accounts on Instagram this week:
Mahoor Jamal (@mahoorjamal &@mahoor_jamal)
One thing I’ve being loving seeing recently on Instagram is the way that artists incorporate culture into their work and Mahoor Jamal captures this perfectly. Coming from a South Asian background, you can see so vividly how this plays a massive part in her work but also how modern culture and trends also play a part.
There’s something so dreamy about the tones she uses in her photographs. Especially her recent work for Generation PK, they look like the South Asian equivalent of a Renaissance painting. So beautiful.
She also has a graphics/illustration account which is equally as good as her photography one!
2. @305ibes
I can’t believe it took me so long to come across this account especially considering that they’re Manchester based (just like me!) 305ibes is a curation kinda account but completely different than any other curation style account I’ve seen on Instagram or anything before. They merge two of my favourite things in the world, music and film photography. They post little slideshow type of videos featuring work by film photographers with amazing music playing in the background.
It’s so mellow and relaxing to watch. They pick the best work from film photographers all around and play the best music too. This has easily become one of my favourite Instagram accounts of all time. It’s also ran by one of my favourite photographers Matthew Tou! I’ve followed him for forever and his work is amazing, you can check out his account here.
I’m super excited to see this account grow and find more talented photographers through it!
3. Nicolas “Yuthanan” Chalmeau (@yuthanan__)
It’s so hard to find unique OOTD style pictures on Instagram in this overfilled wannabe fashion blogger world but when I found Nicolas’ account, I fell in love with every aspect of his outfit pictures. The colours, the tones, the clothes itself and most importantly, the sense of coolness he released. He may just be the most coolest person I follow.
Not only is his feed filled with aesthetically pleasing outfit pictures, but aesthetic pictures of everything and anything. There’s some pretty street shots and some pictures of items from Sillage which is a men’s clothing brand where Nicolas is a designer and director.
If you’re all about the visuals, aesthetics & fashion then this account is made for you! I know I a d o r e it.
4. Marc Hibbert (@marc_hibbert)
A few weeks ago, one of my favourite people on Instagram (@znali) posted this picture on his account that was featured on Document Journal’s Instagram and I loved everything about it. It was taken by Marc Hibbert who did a entire series in India documenting people’s relationship with the Ganges. There’s more about it over on Document Journal if you’re interested, it’s a very good read.
I’ve always loved documentary style photography and this entire set is so beautiful than anything I’ve seen on Instagram recently. They’re captured so well and have the most stunning tones.
Marc also has some cool fashion/portrait shots as well some other interesting stuff on his feed, you should definitely go check him out.
If you have any accounts you wanna share or think I should feature in my next post like this then let me know!
Thanks for reading!
Lots of love,
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The Earring Edit | Zafira
Hi!
The other day I was thinking a lot about Pat Butcher. There's no reasoning to my thinking, it just sorta popped into my head and somehow I ended up playing that awful but also equally beautiful Eastenders dress up game and had completely forgotten the level of Pat Butcher's earring game. It was quite eye-opening for me actually, I had a mini-epiphany and came to question myself. If I can wear cute outfits, why can't my earring game be just as cute?
Earrings and accessories make a massive difference to an outfit (as I've learned from playing Stardoll). They can easily make your entire look from a 7 to an 11. It's amazing.
Here are a few of not only my favourite but recent additions to my earring collection. I am completely smitten with every single pair.
NO.1: i like to pretend these are versace but they're not
These are from Primark and they're honestly the best thing I've ever bought from there. For £2 too. I think I saw these in one of Hannah Gale's Instagram stories, waaay before they were even launched in stores last autumn. They look like vintage Versace and who doesn't love vintage Versace? These are such a good pair of statement earrings, I've dressed these up with dresses but sometimes they're just fun to wear with jeans and a black turtleneck. Best thing I've ever spent £2 on.
These are unfortunately not available anymore and I can't really find anything online like them which is so sad but if I do find anything like them I'll update this post!
NO.2: i'm basically lana del rey and ready for coachella
I'd like to clarify that first I'm nowhere near being Lana Del Rey and also secondly, Coachella isn't somewhere I'd like to ever go lol. These are from a little jewelry shop called Lovisa which has recently found a cosy little spot in my heart. Such a wonderful shop with literally anything you could possibly want/need (mostly want).
I saw these when I was having a browse around and restrained myself from buying them because realistically, where am I wearing these? But I couldn't stop thinking about myself wearing these in the summer when I have lovely beachy wavey hair in a cute dress so I went in the following week and bought them.
Yes, they're totally crazy and absolutely huge but so well crafted and made and not heavy whatsoever. The quality of them is beautiful and I'm ecstatic that they're part of my earring family.
I hate saying this but these aren't available either and I can't find anything similar to them online either, if they're available or find anything similar soon I will defo update this bit.
NO. 3: these are actually super cute little earring elephants that reflect not only my cute personality but looks too
These babies are also from Lovisa and they're just so cute. I went in with my friend Vicky and they always have really good deals on like 3 for £9 or something like that so we both ended up grabbing these and a few other pairs because we couldn't get over how cute they were. But they're just small little elephants that a little bit of 'aww' to your look for the day. Just super super super cute.
These are not on the Lovisa website but definitely available in store so if you have one near you go in and have a browse!
NO. 4: like the previous flower earrings but more casual but also not really they're crazy too
Florals? For spring? Groundbreaking. But seriously, these scream spring and just are so pretty. These are from Lovisa (told you it was a good shop). I bought these before the other big ones as a way to ease myself into them. I wore these with a nice summer dress a few days ago and I have to say, it was quite the look.
You can buy these here:
https://www.lovisa.com/products/rgld-rg-coated-flower-hoop-er
NO.5: the most basic but necessary thicc gold hoops you need to have in your life
I love a good hoop. They're great, they match everything and can change the entire vibe of your look so easily. I bought these originally for my mum as a birthday present from & Other Stories because it seems like my love for hoops is a genetic thing. Anyway, I ended up trying them on and realised that they were my perfect hoops so I went out and bought a pair for myself too.
The shade of gold is so nice and not obnoxiously gold which I have come despise. They compliment my skin tone really nicely. The size is modest and so lovely for day to day but then not too small to dress up either. They're also just really comfy to wear and don't bother me whatsoever. I think I've probably worn these almost everyday this month.
These have impressed me so much, I'm definitely going to have to have a browse around the & Other Stories jewellery section more often.
These aren't available anymore but here's pretty much an identical pair:
NO.6: the devil wears red. .... tassel earrings?
I'm not going to lie, I was kinda over tassel earrings but I saw these in Lovisa a few weeks back and decided I was most definitely not. A lot of my Asian clothes are red and I love pairing them with tassel earrings because of how vibrant they are.
I loooove this shade of red, I definitely want to start wearing it a lot more over the summer period. It makes me so happy. I think these earrings are so simple design wise but again, amazingly crafted and a very good staple 'dressy' earring.
These aren't available online but here's a cute alternative:
https://www.lovisa.com/products/mar19-sg-fabric-flower-drp-er-3
NO. 7: i think i've ran out of quirky titles are this point, but a vintage dangly coin earring? yes pls
These are probably my most worn out of every single pair I've mentioned so far. I picked these up from Blue Rinse Vintage in January I think and they've quickly become my favourite day-to-day earring. They're also super light which is something I always look for in a pair of earrings since I have such small ear lobes lol.
I think these are also a very good staple pair of earrings, very easy to style and just all in all, perfect.
These aren't available online but I know that Primark is selling a lot of coin style jewellery at the minute so it'd be worth having a look!
Thanks for reading this post! If you want to see more like this please let me know :)
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A Long Hiatus, Summer, Prepping for Uni & an Update | Zafira
Hi guys!
It's been quite a while since I've posted anything here simply due to this summer being the busiest one I've had yet. We have 1 day left of August and I cannot believe how fast this summer has flown by but I have loved every minute of it. I took a bit of a break over on my Instagram too which is very much needed but I'll explain more about that later on throughout this post.
This summer began in the most exciting and breathtaking manner as me and family headed down to North Wales for a little holiday at the end of June and I have quite a few posts about that on here. You can check them out by clicking on the following links:
https://www.zaf-ira.co.uk/zafira-1/2018/06/staycation-lookbook-zafira-edit.html
https://www.zaf-ira.co.uk/zafira-1/2018/07/wales-on-film-zafira-edit.html
https://www.zaf-ira.co.uk/zafira-1/2018/07/wales-video-faq-zafira-edit.html
I loved our holiday and it was needed desperately since me and family had a wild, chaotic but amazing summer ahead of us.
July and August were mainly spent on preparing for my cousin's wedding which took up the majority of summer. It my eldest cousin's wedding so it was the first out of the kid's generation which is just so so so weird. I still think my cousin is about 15 and I'm 8 years old dying to borrow her Jacqueline Wilson books. Her wedding was beautiful, it was insanely busy but I loved it. I'm posting a little collage of photographs I took the wedding period over on my Instagram.
And then in the midst of that I've been doing all the boring University stuff like finances and bank accounts. All the stuff that adults usually do but since I'm now legally an adult it's my turn to take over which is very very sad. I start uni in about 3 weeks and I'm so excited but also 100% ready to poop my pants. I'm going to start doing a lot of student based posts very soon so make sure you stay tuned for that!
Lastly, for the past two weeks or so me, my mum and brother decided to take a break over in London after the wedding to just relax, explore and see some family. It was the perfect way to end my summer. However, my phone unexpectedly died the moment I got of the train and set my foot on overly polluted and busy grounds of London. It was quite the tragedy and I then found myself phone-less and disconnected from the online world for nearly 2 weeks. My phone was on it's last legs but it's been that way for a good year and it could have not picked a worse time to die. It's so weird being in one of busiest and liveliest cities without a phone. Anyway, this meant I couldn't really update on Instagram so I took this situation and turned it into a good thing. I think sometimes social media can all get a bit too much so having this break really helped me figure out where I'm going with all this stuff and figure out a path.
I think that's a good summary of everything I wanted to update you all on. I'm sorry I've been a bit M.I.A this summer but I'll be back to normal from this post onward.
Lots of love,
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Dear 2018 | Zafira
Dear 2018,
2017 was a roller coaster of a year. I don't think I've ever been so upset but so happy but so disappointed and extremely overwhelmed all at once in my entire life. It's been a strange one but I'm very much ready for it to end.
I don't want to start this year off with a list of resolutions and things I need to fix from last year because let's be real, I'm never ever going achieve everything on my list. I'm not expecting a lot from this year, just the few important things that I feel will not only improve me as a person but my entire life in general.
I hope that you offer me a range of opportunities because I think I'm finally ready to live my life to fullest. I know this year will be challenging. It's my last year at college and I'll be sitting my exams in May (😭) and hopefully, if I get the grades I need, I'll be off to Uni in September which is insane. In my head, I still feel like I'm 10 years old but I'll be turning 18 this year and I'll be an adult. It's time to slowly grow up and let real life hit me and I'm ready for it.
I have this irrational fear of change but at the same time, I love change. I can't wait for it. I know that a lot of things will change this year, with my education, with family and much more but it's taken me a solid 17 years to accept that these changes are good. Even if they don't feel like it at the time, they'll make more sense as I grow older and learn to understand how if they didn't occur, I wouldn't be where I am right now.
I spent a lot of time in 2017 wasting away my hours, contemplating over things that didn't matter at all and a lot of staring at the ceiling and listening to Kanye's 'The Life of Pablo' all night until the early hours of dawn hit. That's all about to change, I love you Kanye but I think it's about time I sort out my sleeping schedule and spend my time on things that will have positive outcomes. I'm ready to work hard for what I want and I'm extremely determined to tick off many goals on my list this year.
I hope you are sweet to me and I hope that time spent with my family and friends this year are so heart warming that my heart over heats and feels like it's going explode every time I with them. I haven't been a very good friend or family member this year, in some ways, I feel like I've neglected everyone close to me. But, I'm working on myself and I think it's finally hit hard how much my loved ones do for me. I want to make my family and friends proud and be there for them. I want them to feel a sense of warmth and comfort when they are around me.
My camera and art supplies became a little dusty this year. I hadn't been as devoted to capturing photographs and creating art as much as I would have liked to mainly out of pure laziness. It's been harder to create art over the past couple of months, the only time I feel a little spurt of creativity is during class and I feel this overwhelming urge to doodle. I want to desperately work on this year, I want to be the artsy fartsy child I was a long time ago. I know she's hiding deep inside me somewhere. I captured a lot of memories this year on film. I'm in love with my Canon EOS 300 but I feel as if I haven't spent enough time with it in my hands. Capturing memories has been fun but I know that there's so much more out there for me to document and capture. There's so much going on in the world that so so so many people don't see. I want to change this. I want to take a series of images so eye opening that it changes the way people think and see. I'm done with all this tumblr-y stuff that people expect of me when they see my work, it's not what I want to do anymore. I want my work to have more meaning.
I want to spend more time on here. I love writing. It's something that feels so natural so to avoid it and not spend anytime doing it feels wrong and uncomfortable. It'll be hard to find the time to put in but I will find time and make this my own little cute personal space on the vast web. I've done this place up a little bit and found a name I quite like, 'Zafira Ahmed' seemed a bit too plain Jane. I really like this new name.
Charles Buckowski said "I was waiting for something extraordinary to happen, but as the years wasted on nothing ever did unless I caused it" and I intend to live by this everyday this year. In 2017, I felt bored with my life, it seemed as if the days were all blending together, there was no difference between them. I want to do exciting things, big or small. I want to be spontaneous and not live by a structured day to day schedule.
2018, please go slowly. I feel like my whole life is flashing before my eyes already when I've barely just hit 17. I want to enjoy every aspect of my life so thoroughly and vividly that the memories stay with me forever. Whether these memories are good or bad, I'm ready to experience them.
Yours sincerely,
Zafira
x
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