Keep it Real 

I have noticed a new trend that I don't like : Fake Eyelashes during the Day. 

Let's talk.

Fake lashes, to me, are for performances, photo shoots, videos, artistic moments .... I don't really think they are for a normal evening out but 'Hey' I'll let that one slip! 
However, during the day, you really don't need to be wearing fake eyelashes- especially the kind that are currently being mass produced and sold everywhere. 

Companies are producing cheap, fat, fake looking, boxes of lashes that you can buy in any store and they DO NOT look good. They look fake and feel fake. They make your eyelids look heavy and sometimes the edges stick out because of the bad glue or stiffness of the material they are made of. It's not attractive.

On top of all the above, do you really feel like you need to stick those on to look nicer? It's like wearing too much make-up: once you get use to them you will start feeling like you can't leave the house without them and that's not good news. 

A couple summers back, I witnessed two girls, with fake lashes on, sunbathing by the pool >>>!!!??@$%)^*£!@)_!O@SL???***@(£R*!)$_)R)_)(£($(!!!!!!!! <<< ---- Need I say more ??? 

Keep it real. Wear 'em when you NEED 'em. Maybe for a fun shoot or maybe, just maybe a special night out but PLEASE don't wear them during the day and PLEASE get a decent pair !



Fake Lashes in the Day? Fashion Faux Pas. 

I think this is how it's done >>>>










Much Love and Shoes,      

à bientôt,

Mlle Ginger

Mission Accomplished 

A couple posts back you may have read about my  "Party Dress" Challenge... well here is the result. 

I wore the same Black Jumpsuit to 2 events. Both events shared the same crowd.

Outfit number 1 : 
The Dance Station Christmas Party.


Black Jumpsuit ( Bay Trading) 
White Sequin Shirt (Primark)
Black Belt (Bebe)
Black Sequin Bow Shoes (Kurt Geiger)
White Watch and Feather Earrings. 

Outfit number 2: 
The Dance Station Secret Santa & End of Year Jam/ Battle  

Black Jumpsuit (same as above: that's the point of the challenge) 
Dance Station T-shirt (teaching uniform )
Silver Belt (American Apparel)
Silver Socks ( a sock shop :/ )
Black Booties (with studio appropriate square heel - Topshop) 
Silver Hoops (Claire's )
Tinsel around bun (for Christmas spirit)






All the items above, including the jumpsuit, are old. Nothing new was purchased. 
I saved money and had a great time wearing things that I've really only worn a couple times before.

Next event that comes up (my Birthday excluded ) I will be shopping in my wardrobe first. Clothes, shoes, earrings, bags, belts, bangles, hair accessories etc are not things that I NEED more of .... and sometimes if you don't actually open your closet and try things on you forget how great your stuff actually is ! 

So this year my Christmas Eve outfit (we French go big on Christmas Eve) is composed of last years "Birthday" skirt with last years  "Christmas day" sparkly sweater. All I have to do is pick a belt and decide on the shoes..... and I have OPTIONS. TRUST ME. 

I'm excited ! Re- wear gang ! Mix and Match ! It's fun + free ! 

Much love and shoes, 

à bientôt,

Mlle Ginger

Commit to the moment 

I think it's important to commit to the moment. 

I often use (shout out) this sentence when I teach Waacking and I want my students to get lost in the music and just Dance ! 

As well as believing in the importance of "committing to the moment" I believe that sometimes you just have to have some fun.  

This week I did both those things when I entered the 2 vs 2 All Style Fancy Dress Battle at Throwdown with BGirl Roxy. Girl Power !  

Once we had partnered up, I only had one thing left to do: find Roxy and I some costumes. I didn't tell her what I had ordered but I knew she would be excited when she found out what I had done.  You see, both of us are really looking forward to Christmas so I figured these outfits would do the trick:

** BLAM ** 

Santa's Little Helpers took a night off from Santa's workshop to Battle at Throwdown ... shhhh don't tell him ! 

Outfit breakdown : 

Red and Green Elf dresses. Black belts added for a little more shape and glamour.  

Black leggings/ tights with fluffy red and white striped/ polka dotted socks poking out the top of the footwear.

Black trainer heels for me and black trainers for Roxy. 

Hair : Roxy had 2 French Braids with ZigZag parting to match the dress neckline, bottom and sleeves. Elf hat was worn at times. 

I had a bun on the left side of my head with a big red scrunchy. 

Earrings : Christmas Earrings made by Roxy for Sale as 'Babes Beads'. Get yours now ! 

So, did we commit ???

Pictures by Mélodie Brière 

I guess the bottom line of this post is that sometimes you just 'gotta' be a Merry Elf !!

Much love and shoes,

à bientôt,

Mlle Ginger

The "Party Dress" Rebellion 


Today's frustration is about The Party Dress. With all the Christmas Parties coming up I'm being asked left right and centre If I have found a dress. 

So I ask myself a few questions :

Question 1
a. Why does one have to wear a dress to the Christmas Party?
b.Are trousers not good enough? What about a jumpsuit? Or a skirt? Shorts?! 
The pressure to wear a dress is Too High. I refuse to conform to the rule. 
I will not wear a dress. 

Question 2
a.If I'm going to 2 events do I really need to buy 2 different outfits?
b.Why can't I wear the same outfit to both parties?
I'm not made of money and my wardrobe deserves to be seen more than once. I have plenty of clothes that I would like to wear again... lots of shoes that deserve a trip outside their boxes and many pairs of earrings waiting to dangle. 

So I say: 

This holiday season I've set myself a Challenge: I'm going to wear the Same Outfit to 2 Parties. I will change the Styling to make it Fresh but I will wear the same basic bottom layer - the Black Jumpsuit !!!!!  

I will also NOT be buying anything NEW. 

Now I know what you're thinking : if I go to 2 separate events with 2 different crowds it's ok ...BUT that is not the case. I'm going to 2 events with a similar guest list and therefore common guests. Either way both events will have photographic evidence. 

So Can I make it Werk ?! 

Whether my outfits are a hit or not, this challenge is making me excited to re- wear and not spend... didn't think i'd see the day ! This is good for me already !!

Stay tuned for pictures :) 

Much love and shoes, 

à bientôt,

Mlle Ginger 

The Hoop Hook Up.  

When I got my ears pierced I was clearly told by my mother : no dangly earrings . That lasted a hot second 'cause the only thing on my agenda was HOOPS ! 

Silver Hoops. You can't go wrong. 

You can wear them with jeans, a sweatshirt , big scarf, high pony tail and a pair of vicious boots.
You can wear them on a night out where you're scared you may be overdressed so you tone it down with casual Silver Hoops.
You can wear them with a tracksuit and Timberland boots like in the 90's. 

I have had my share of Silver Hoops. I've been wearing them for about 11 years . So here is my Silver Hoop knowledge if you are looking to try a pair ... 

1. Get the kind that close in a full circle shape: the stem goes into the Hoop at the back making a full circle. The other (useless) kind close with a butterfly or a hook and leave a gap in the Hoop. Why the closed ones? because the open ones get caught in your hair, scarf ... and either fall out or kill off your earlobes.

2.Don't bother spending any money on them. The fact is Hoops break .Trust me. I have had loads of "nice" pairs and they all died. Not worth it.

3. Don't get the thick ones. They will make your earlobes go south. 

So where should you go for Silver Hoops ? Claire's. 

Yes, you can get a few pairs of different size Hoops all on one earring carton at a reasonable price. They are not thick but not flimsy either. They close perfectly at the back and when they go a bit rusty bin 'em and go get some more because they are cheap anyway ! 

So the moral of the story is : get to Claire's and grab some Silver Hoops because they are a Timeless Classic. 

                                                                        Hoops at Christmas ! 

Much love and shoes, 

à bientôt, 

Mlle Ginger

Know When to STOP ! 

I started really paying attention to shoes about 5 years ago - I blame Sex and The City- but I never really had enough money to buy the ones that I liked. Its not that I was aiming for Louboutins or Nicholas Kirkwood as my first "nice" pair but I REALLY liked Kurt Geiger ...

.... then I quit smoking cigarettes (3 and a bit years ago) . You see all of a sudden I had a bit more money in my account because I wasn't spending £5.50 on a pack a day !

So after a whole cigarette free month I decided to buy THOSE amazing Kurt Geiger Shoes. That was the beginning of a Love Affair that would kill my finances for years to come .

Every month that I wasn't smoking I got a pair of shoes ! But when do you stop rewarding yourself ?? I think quitting smoking is a great accomplishment no ?? Obviously I have calmed down and I don't buy a pair a month anymore but its still quite bad ... 

You see I love my shoes, they make me feel and look good and they inspire me . What do they inspire me to do you ask? Take pictures is one thing!   

Here are some shots that explain quite well how quickly my collection grew: 

This picture was taken before I quit smoking, probably about 4 years ago and 2 pairs are NOT MINE because I needed a few more to make the shot work : I did not have enough shoes . 

Photography: Floyd &Phoenix
Hair and Make-Up : Melodie Briere
Styling and Concept : Mlle Ginger








These pictures were taken in the last year and ALL THE SHOES ARE MINE !
Some shoes were not even selected for the shoot because they were too dirty !!! Some shoes were not selected because the colours didn't work... basically some shoes were not successful at the "shoe shoot" audition ! 

 

The pics are fierce right?
You can see some shoes better in this shot ... admire the beauty !

Photography: Melodie Briere
Hair and MAke-Up : Melodie Briere
Styling and Concept: Mlle Ginger

I think that some people have worse addictions so I'm not too worried about myself yet . I have learned to control the addiction and to admit - I love shoes ! 


Much love and shoes, 

à bientôt, 

Mlle Ginger

Bienvenue au Journal Roux ! 


I'm Ginger, I'm a dancer - more specifically i'm a Waacker -and I'm OBSESSED with Shoes ! 

Being a Waacker has enabled me to wear things I never thought I would so I figured I would mainly write about shoes as well as all things fashionable: bags, jewellery, belts, shoes, hair things, make up, photo shoots, shoes, battle outfits, party wear, vintage finds, shoes .... and maybe dance from time to time ! I'll probably include some posts on what I believe are a "Fashion Faux Pas" and what I believe are "Timeless Classics" . 

But really who knows where Le Journal Roux will go ? 

So here it goes! Watch out for my first post ! 

Much love and shoes, 

à bientôt, 

Mlle Ginger