from diary...pretty, people and pastries in Dubrovnik

I spent most of my August days in Dubrovnik. This is the city that won my heart with breathtaking architecture and unexpected adventures that appear around every corner. Like an old graceful lady it will keep one safe among the city walls while palaces and buildings will whisper the stories of the past. In this city you just can be either annoyed by colonies of tourists that believe they are in Game of Thrones set or you can stay speechless after observing all those wonderful architectural and botanical surprises (in this city plants and tress literally grow from nowhere) or being observed by hundreds of cats marching through the city like some old keepers of bygone times.

see in the thread below images that capture some of my lovely moments spent there

London

Dearest readers and fellow bloggers, 

I spent few last days rambling through various flatshare webites and contacting friends and friends of the friends via facebook trying to organize my living in London. I want to thank all the wonderful and friendly people helping with advices. I am flying to London by the end of this September. I will be there for at least two months to attend course at Central Saint Martins. 

Therefore I am looking for the room from beginning of October. If you know maybe someone who needs a roommate or you need a roommate, please let me know, via comments or my email (ninablace@gmail.com) 

I am friendly, responsible and easygoing fashion writer looking for a room in East London area in a flatshare or house with normal, cool roommates. My only needs are bed to sleep and meditate, wifi if possible and tiny desk for writing. I am going to be in London for at least two months, but who knows maybe I’ll stay longer. 

I hope London will be nice to me. I am leaving blank, without any expectations but with positive attitude. I have so many things to do before my trip but I am already too excited and nervous to be focused.

Yours truly, 

Nina xx

p.s. in this search of my place for living, usually I end up on websites offering flats at Notting Hill or  residential properties from heaven like these from estate agents scotland.

Oh, seems that we need to make some money :)

photo journal...terraneo festival 2013

days of summer were different this time... really peculiar. i was saddened more than once. i detested possessions and human’s obsession with it more than ever. i felt determined, grown up and naively juvenile at the same time. 

my june and july wouldn't be survived if it wasn’t for one blonde boy. through our coffee times i laughed like foolish kid in luna park. we invented humor that was bitter and delightful, innocent and evil. my summer, summer spent working in mine is lost but it was too kind to give a friendship to cherish for the rest of my life. misslikey was forgotten. it was work, work and sleep with some gems of laugh and wisdom that I found in between. no spare time. no muse to take me to my cloud. lost identity, I guess. after all these years of living on blogger, i really started to believe i suffer from bipolar disorder. there is always this made-up misslikey who appears to be my fantasy second half (could be entitled ego also, I suppose). when I feel like a dreamer misslikey has a wisdom. when I feel like a phantom, misslikey flirts witty with life. 

when august came, came along the freedom as well. i would love that I am relaxed type of person, but I am not. moi wanted to be a mermaid and get lost somewhere where one can bathe among the stars. misslikey, au contraire, decided to throw us in the service of cheap liquor and summer playing. therefore, we visited terraneo festival one more time. misslikey is too fond of cool cool breeze, liquor and dirty knees. my photographer was on the mission just on the first day. the next two days liquor took away my common sense and I just couldn't mislay those poetry and Père Lachaise talks because of camera and pen. it was dirty knees, chewing gums on my lingerie and dresses made of gingham and beads. we don't have photos or words to describe that. and it's misslikey's fault, not mine.

♫ click more to see the photos from my day one at terraneo festival spent with dear people ♫

April Journal Part II

☂I feel in love with these dolls I saw on the antique market one April Sunday. ☂My “tea shelf” is getting bigger and bigger every day.☂Spring stars; Tulips, Smena, Mansfield Park and Earl Grey black tea with bergamot flavor. I found recently on the flea market this gorgeous sweater with embroidered tulips and I absolutely adore it. ☂I currently live in the city of Zagreb which in the springtime is like gorgeous walking museum adorned with clouds and blooms. This is my favourite building. ☂I just can’t help myself; I am really obsessed with granny underwear. 

☂Pinafores are my thing. I could wear them every day. ☂I bought this children’s tea set for my niece. She always says; “I want to drink tea from floral porcelain like my aunt.” She is real petite Mademoiselle and she was absolutely thrilled when she saw these antique Altrohlau pink porcelain cups. ☂ This denim dress and saddle bag are my spring uniform. It was old Topshop men's shirtdress from my edgy phase. I cut the narrow collar off, created waist and shortened the sleeves. Added heart buttons and little bow on new neckline et voila! ☂You might have already noticed that I have a thing for vintage brooches. Wondering when I will start to sleep in them. Haha

Hope you are ready for Monday and new week, darlings!
Au revoir
xx

April Journal Part I

☂I bought this vintage black dress embroidered with gold thread few months ago on vintage fair and I absolutely adore it. I wear it with black loafers and grey frilly knee socks or extremely high platform heels. ☂My room at parent’s house adorned with lilac blooms. It’s my only constant place until I find my own spot under the sun. Sometimes I get so tired of rented apartments and moving around. ☂Bob Dylan inspires me a lot. This outfit is inspired by Last Thoughts on Woody Guthrie, which is my personal pray. ☂I truly appreciate the goodness of sage plant. I love its fragrance and healing powers it has. I also appreciate good book and cup of coffee. ☂Another still of my room. This vintage pale blue pajama dress with fringes has been in my closet last 5 years. 

☂My precious bicycle under magnolia tree. Bicycle rides and Francoise Hardy’s chansons really make me happy during the springtime. ☂Some new things that make me happy; long-sleeved cream lace top and high-wasted undies. (Bought at H&M.) ☂I try to use my “lazy time” for learning. I love history of fashion. I want to soak all the knowledge of our rich human culture. ☂My bunny flats (that are copy of Charlotte Olympia’s kitty flats) I bought from Asos last September and I still adore them.

March diary on Instagram

☂Healthy breakfast including fresh fruit is of extreme importance for me. ☂In March there was just one rainy day that was enough warm for my vintage mint trench coat. ☂I am the March baby. I’ve recently found out that number 1 represents the Sun. ☂There’s nothing better than white hosiery on pale T-bar or Mary Jane flats.

♣I love men who bring flowers. Especially when flowers are tulips. ♣I deeply appreciate vintage blue dresses with trim detail. I found this baby that I named Renoir dress on flea market 2 years ago.♣ This self-portrait was taken right after my haircut. My hair grows like crazy. ♣Being freelancer can be amazing. But it can be tricky sometimes because I can lose focus easily. That’s why I love my Frankie Daily Journal- It makes hard things lovely.

☂I bought this floral dress in charity shop not long ago with intention to alter it. It was huge and wide so I created new waistline and made a little scalloped collar.☂March was also time of moving to another apartment. I move a lot. It was 12th time in 10 years that I am moving.☂This month I finally opened my etsy store named Little Cloth Girl where I am selling vintage looking drawstring bags and tote bags. In future, I would like to make clothes, but we will see what life will bring. ☂On one cloudy day in March, I found this children story book on flea market. Book is illustrated by Jiří Trnka who was a Czech puppet-maker, illustrator, motion-picture animator and film director.

♣I found on the flea market this burgundy beret and I adore it beeacuse it’s very large. ♣0n 8th of the month was International Women’s Day. I am very proud to be a female. ♣When moving chaos was finally over, I spend one day in shorts and my cozy polka dot sweater reading Wuthering Heights. ♣And yes, I received a first order for my etsy shop; I was so happy and the drawstring bag I sold was one of my favorite bags I ever made. I hope it will bring pretty times to my costumer.

Gloomy Instagram

Are you annoyed that there's no option for rearrange of photos on Instagram? Since Instagram photos are arranged with the latest photo at the top, my Instagram is one huge mess. That's why I am posting my little instagram collage. 

p.s.And also if you wondered how to save your instagram photos to your computer, without connecting it to mobile phone, try Instaport. It's the easiest way to download your photographs. Do you know any good apps or programs for easier and better instagramming? If do, oui, please share! 

And oui, here's my instagram account.

Brunette days

Dear readers,

I know I’ve been awfully lazy with outfit posts here on misslikey and I promise to change that in future. (I have this problem with posing and I am very nervous in front of the camera, but I decided to get rid of my phobias in this year.) 

It has been almost two months now that I am walking on this planet as brunette, and I have to tell you this has been a really big change for me. However, I fell more serious now but the little blonde wants to come out all the time. That’s why I spend awfully lot of time talking to my hair and that usually sounds like this; "Hush, little flirty blonde, we are much better without you now" or "Keep quiet, stay in". When I don’t have conversations with my hair, I spend my free time dreaming, meditating, reading and turning the globe on my favourite antique toy that is present from a dear person. I also can’t get enough of Frankie magazine issue 51. It has haunted me ever since I first saw it in my hands. It’s another smart, witty and pretty issue of dearest Frankie.

P.s. I finally opened my etsy shop. Take a look here. 

I am wearing Zara loafers, Zara burgundy pants and blouse embellished with some of my favourite vintage brooches

Autumn Dress

Wallpaper borrowed from Frankie

my Valentina Assoluto

As a charismatic muse of modern Valentino, Valentina is intriguing, magnetic, unpredictable. Valentina transforms clothing into a secret experience, a private search for her inner self, and a personal and intimate form of pleasure.

I’ve received Valentina Assouluto, a new fragrance from Valentino house about a week ago and I’ve become slightly addicted to the scent it spreads. It’s such a beautiful, mystique, seductive fragrance adorned with notes of bergamot, white Alba, Smeggia peach, jasmine, tuberose, vanilla, cedar, oak moss and patchouli. Pretty and elegant bottle is made of brown opaline glass and adorned with large flower, emblem of Valentino couture. For this little still of my life, I wore my vintage beaded dress that is really one of the most darling dresses in my closet, made of pure soft silk (I’ve became little snobbish lately with fabrics so I avoid fabric mixtures) that is covered with thousands of ivory beads. This intense fragrance smells on all those pretty moments with inner self, rituals of dressing up, love and pretty dresses. It will be my perfect partner in all those lovely moments that are about to come.

neverending stories

farewell, summer days

Those were the days when we soaked our feet in salt to refresh our spirits and clear our minds. Our little brains were tired of a talk and thought of what we humans really are. We were drinking sweet lemonade out of the finest crystal we had. With picking the fresh mint that brought a flavor of innocence in our pretty ways, at least one our hand used to be painted brown. At times we were feeling frisky and young, we would add a something stronger to spice up the evenings of our moment in time. 

We climbed all the trees we saw in hope to be closer to the sky above. Or maybe we were catching with teacups in our hands that vividness of life. Alas, from the day we sensed the first ray of light on our naked skin, the secret things were hiding out there, never ready to unveil the beauty that runs in front of our eyes. Maybe if we could see everything hidden, life would be just a veil of blues that predictably hugs us from time to time. 

We watched the little flying creatures and their freedom flights. That gave us idea that only little butterflies are able to talk language that beauty knows. They whispered to flower every time you showed your bright smile. And with summer sun that is about to vanish like a stain of the grass from our jeans, they will stop carrying secrets around. You realize that some things happen just to become the blank page in a diary of life. 

When you see that august slowly packs its suitcase of joy, you know he is a good fellow with very kind heart. Secret creatures from the wood that surround us, told me that once. In a dresses that petals coloured and with lace inserts that only fairies know to make, they will be your friend and whisper you sweet words of comfort at the end of the summer day. So, you don’t need to be surprised with all the sudden light. Their dresses shine bright and their faces glow like a rose after a rainy day. Did you know that on the farewell of summer, you could see them if you want. When the fog comes, if you follow the little steps in the grass, you will see they are wearing lace gloves. They braid tenderly your horses’ manes during the nights. With the last of their rhyme, once again they will wash away memories of blues and bring a smile for the new pretty times. Is there anything to do, then to close the chapter of your velvet book, till the next sunny dawn comes.

Photos misslikey;  Roses in collage are prints by famous Belgian botanical artist  Pierre-Joseph Redouté, who was official court artist of Queen Marie Antoinette.

collar and flowers

I adore this pearl collar I received from oasap. It found a perfect friend in my Liberty print ballerinas that I found last spring on Asos. Last week I tried to capture every little moment including plants and flowers that are embellishing our balcony this spring with my Smena. And yesterday by accident I opened the film before I did rewinding. I was yelling bit at myself, but now I am hoping for the bleach effect. I am just like a child sometimes...

sweet break

No matter how much I love lazy rainy days with the book and tea, it’s pretty unpleasant when Mrs. Rain surprises you on your getaway. Exactly that happened last week when my boyfriend and me went on the short visit to island Hvar. And although rain was most of the time, it didn’t manage to spoil our little trip, so the raindrops became romantic guide that revealed us all the loveliness of the island. And I cannot deny the magic of all the pretty smells in the air after the rain. I had my own eat-pray-love moment and enjoyed in pleasant company of all the people we met there. I fell in love with a little village on the hill and the house where friend’s grandma and her sister live (second photo in last row). These two are probably most charming ladies that I ever met, so pleasant and graceful, like they popped out from pages of some novel. And you cannot tell if the house is prettier from the inside or on the outside. Proudly standing tall walls and romantic white wooden windows in the company of antique furniture, curtains made of lace, typewriter and the light breeze that kisses pureness of the place. And on the outside you can’t do anything but be just bedazzled with the aromas that jasmines, oleanders, roses, candytufts and other flowers are spreading. My soul was cured with the cup of a tea and cookies ladies served me. Oh, my old-fashioned heart needed just that.

*My little instagram diary in the collage (click to enlarge)

do and love

I was recently interviewed by lovely Maria for her super pretty blog Avenue M.

For this she asked me to make a collage so I put all of my favorite things

and what I do together. Collage is above, read entire post here

green velvet

   I am wearing lovely green velvet dress  (gift from Sheinside) and tote bag "french films & cigarettes" I made.

cupcakes and cocktails

I swear it upon Zeus when you ask me how old I am I don’t know the answer. Usual I will answer you I was born in 19xx so calculate. Birthday is a day when everyone knows your age, including you. That’s why I bought candle with little clown wearing polka dots and carrying the number one. I am not trying to camouflage my years spent here on the Earth; I just feel like a one-year-old, I said to my friends. At least, as I am getting older and every time I look upon the starry sky I realize I don’t have a clue about life. Clueless like that I woke up on a day of my birth day at 9 am. Went to bed the night before at 3 am, because I had to make candied violets. My boyfriend said I look like a Wisteria Lane housewife and I answered he didn’t have violet cupcakes for his birthday. My friends came at 3 p.m. Started like polite tea party with cupcakes, lemonade, coffee and strawberry cheese cake, it ended about 3am with empty mojitos and deviant 30-year-olds. “Sing along you fools”. Politeness is overpriced anyway.

P.S. For Jelly hearts strawberry cheesecake I used recipe from here, and for cupcakes with candied violets from here (just replaced rose petals with violet ones)

Pierrot collar

Maybe the right title for this post should be Don’t do it yourself. I need to tell you I used to be afraid of clowns. Many of same age as mine and I won’t mention the numbers remember Steven King’s IT. Since I’ve always had pretty lavish imagination these mini series easily created additional phobia so I even didn’t go to toilette without pulling my mum. Don’t know at what age I forgot about the evil side of clowns and started to have sympathy for these friends of fun. But If I knew I would wear clownish collars I would keep some of the Halloween costumes, at least to use them as patterns. After I ripped apart few times Pierrot collar from old bodysuit found on the market, I felt very proud when I gathered the same on the neckline without visible stitches. But after I tried it I realized that logic is not BBF of mine. Bloody circular ruffle- I yelled at fabric and realized I spent too much time to throw it away. Whatever, I’ll pretend it’s Pierrot- I said to myself and went out for a walk.

COLLAGE; my non-DIY, Vivetta lace dress, Blythe doll

cold times

The Neverending Story?