Does Fashion Week Still Have A Purpose?

Do fashion weeks still have a purpose? 

Fashion shows just aren’t what they used to be anymore and it’s down to the by the technological epidemic of the world.  In their prime fashion weeks were presentations for a room of potential customers and a few others, essentially a marketing scheme. However, over time they have turned into a marketing spectacles aimed at mass audiences with thousands visiting and millions more steaming online.

A fashion week, there is probably no better way for fashion labels to get people to take notice of a label than a fashion week because of the level of interest it attracts. As a marketing campaign they’re excellent at promoting the label and promoting its content. Even further often these things act as networking event for industry heads to congregate. There is also the aspect of the creativity that these events breed because often they’re not only marketing spectacles but visually aesthetic spectacles too. 

In spite of all this over time the real essence of fashion weeks have changed. In the modern day fashion weeks have been less about the clothing and more about the prestige of the event. (However with an increasing amount of fashion weeks introduced globally even the aspect of prestige has somewhat seemed lessen.

Initially the system of the runways meant that clothing and material was not only to promote but for designers to find retail buyers, however in many cases the clothing wouldn’t be available for another 4 months, this often resulted in a loss of momentum and buzz around the work as customers and stock buyers has to wait. Customers have grown tired of waiting and often wanted to for the moment. 

Though this way of working still exists, it has arguably lost step with a world where everything is instantly visible on social media, where brands can use their websites to bypass store partners and sell straight to shoppers themselves because of the upsurge in technological advancements made in recent years. Tom Ford sum this point up by stating ’In world that has become increasingly immediate, the current way of showing a collection four months before it is available to consumers is outdated’.

Technological advancement has meant that this manner of branding and promoting has come secondary to the likes of social media ie Instagram. 

In this form designers can promote their content more consistently and in a cheaper manner. The only possible note is that with it being behind a screen there is less creative expression that a fashion week has that ultimately allows brands to bring a uniqueness their work. However,  these benefits have come subservient when looking at the money that can be saved for brands when using technology to promote themselves. Using Instagram in many cases has been cheaper for the designer - not having to worry about the cost of models and the room itself and photographers for their clothes to be featured in magazines to be viewed to the general public. 

These forces are slowly but surely transforming the fashion industry. 

FROW looks at NYFW

Harpers Bazaar released all the front row looks of New York Fashion week so far. When looking through how the celebrities have styled themselves there wasn’t really a lot of outfits that I thought looks that exceptional. However, my most favourable ones are shown below. 

Bella Hadid wearing a green co-ord suit. I really like how the suit is oversized and the trousers are lowered to hip level. I also like how she's paired it with a lace crop to and simple black heels. This style fits in with the no-gender theme that's trending currently, especially with the oversized look.

I love Emily Ratajkowski's black co-ord.  What I like most about this outfit is how the sleeves are oversized and everything else is fitted. I feel that the whole outfit, including the simple black heels look very chic.

This outfit put together by Zendaya is one of my favourite yet.  The outfit is very fitted which suits Zendaya's figure really well. I like how the top is made to look like it was a suit jacket but with thin straps instead. The grey and the back combination also gives a sophisticated and business look. Overall, I really like this style.

Last but not least, Vanessa Hudgens looks amazing. I don’t usually like sequinned styles outfits but this one Vanessa wears I really like. I think the oversized jacket and boots makes the dress stand out. Also, the colour combinations go well. With the smokey make-up and slick back hair, the whole outfit looks tremendous. 

NYFW Longchamp S/S 2020

With the start of NYFW I was browsing on what collections had been showcased so far. I came across Longchamp a brand I haven't heard of before. I really like some pieces in their collection and they seemed to be on a lot of articles on being one of the best shows so far. The designer behind the collection is Sophie Delafontaine and apparently this is her 3rd year running in the NYFW. The collection was inspired by Judy Chicago's lively artwork combined with the '90s and '70s ideal woman. The collection is" bold, busy, headstrong, and effortlessly chic.  It has Feminine qualities, sporty sensibilities and a bohemian spirit." describes Harpers-bazaar.  Below are a few of my favorite pieces. 

The Fashion Industry Gives Barbie An Award

The fashion industry gave Barbie an award but does she really deserve one? An award maybe but this award maybe not so much. 

On the 3rd of June 2019, the Council of Fashion Designers of America gave the doll its Board of Directors’ Tribute. For the sake of clarity it is important to note that the award did not go to Ruth Handler, the woman who created Barbie in 1959 nor Lisa McKnight, the woman who today oversees the Barbie brand. The tribute went to the doll itself. An award in recent years that been received by former first lady Michelle Obama, entertainer and activist Janelle Monáe to name a few. However this time the recipient of the award was a doll. 

The award was selected by the trade organisation’s board; names include Michael Kors, Vera Wang, Prabal Gurung and Tracy Reese to name a few. On the night, the enthusiasm for Barbie was not unanimous however the decision has sparked conversation and is littered with controversy. 

Barbie is a symbol. McKnight president of the brand Barbie, accepted the award, and his speech highlighted how the brand operates as a symbol for inspiring women. McKnight touched on the increased diversity in the range of dolls and also commented on how there was an astronaut Barbie and President Barbie long before there were real women in space and or involved In politics. This summed up by his statement ‘Barbie is a platform for ideas and stands for girls empowerment’. His speech indicated that by putting the spotlight on a female figure through a doll this could spark possibilities and change for women. However and in-spite of this, yes barbie is a captivating and an inspiring doll yes, but ultimately barbie is just a symbol and this essentially was the issue that provoked controversy.

For the most part fashion has kept its focus on entities that have set the industry on a new path. An industry that is overwhelmingly for and about women has focused on celebrating those who have advocated on behalf of women — on behalf of their right to control their body, define their image and delight in the pleasures of beauty. Celebrated real people that have made a tangible difference to the world. Had the award been given to Handler or McKnight herself, I believe there would have been less of an issue because ultimately it is the vision of these woman that have impacted society, the brand Barbie has just been the medium that in which they have facilitated this. Barbie, despite all the marketing and platform aspects, is still a doll. And women are not and for the award to be given to a piece of plastic that functions on the basis of its aesthetic provides some questions. 

It’s somewhat detrimental to see the industry honour Barbie in the same way it did Obama. When in society we are dealing with issues relating to: diversity, women’s advancement and treatment in the workplace and fashion has the ability to effect, this honouring Barbie is a celebration of fashion as aesthetics rather than fashion as a celebration of the ability for an individual to make a difference by seeing examples of other individuals doing the same. 

 A doll has meaning. A doll can stand as an impactful symbol. But it should never stand in for a real woman.

Bridal Company Wants To Move Shopping Online

Browsing on Robin Givhan's Instagram I came across a discussion on bridal dress shopping moving to online. The company Amsale has said they "see the company transitioning from a fashion company to a fashion technology company." and from this have launched Amsale X You.  This is where shoppers go online and design their own wedding dress. Neil Brown, the ceo’s partner who sadly passed away but has decided to continue her legacy, has said “We’re not just decorating a sneaker, we’re inviting the bride into our design room and sharing our intellectual property with her so she can express her own design impulses.”

"A bride can select her dress’s bodice and skirt and add a wisp of a belt. She can pick from size 0 to 24, mixing and matching different-size tops and bottoms for an optimum fit. It won’t matter if a customer chooses tulle or silk faille, long sleeves or strapless — the cost is a flat fee of $5,000" The dress is made to order and shipped out in four weeks. 

As amazing and stress free as it sounds there is also the hurdle of, what if it isn’t as flattering in real life or even worse,  it doesn’t fit? 

But apparently shoppers will be able to eventually "create a personalised avatar with their exact measurements." Furthermore,  "More bodices and skirts from the company’s vast pattern archive will be added for even more dress possibilities" explains Robin. 

Apparently, 25% of brides were responsibly for 75 % of the wedding spending and Amsale is in that category. Brown figures that if consumers are willing to spend $5,000 on Designer dress on online websites such as Net-a-Porter then they would be willing to do the same for a wedding dress. 

However, shopping for a wedding dress is a shared experience that many women enjoy. Experiencing this online makes a massive change in this industry. 

Amsale isn’t the first company to offer custom gowns online, other companies such as Anomalie and  Bluethread do the same. 

According to Robin "Many millennials are planning their weddings online and pre-gaming wedding attire before they even get engaged. And plenty of women skip the designated bridal gowns and simply buy a great party dress with the click of a button because they’re more excited about their destination wedding than Swarovski crystals on silk organza." 

Furthermore, there have been said to be plans for Armsale x You to include a group online shopping experience, kind of like FacetTime x Bridal shopping.  In my opinion, the idea of shopping for your wedding dress online just isn’t the same. I think it's still nice to keep to the traditions and experiencing this with your family and friends, although it is a very smart idea. 

What are your thoughts on this? 

Glossier - Top 5 Reasons It's So Successful

Glossier is a digitally native beauty brand with a small product range who’s products mainly focus on skincare. With some 1.5 million Instagram followers and the brand named as a top beauty brand by Allure, Teen Vogue, Glamour, Nylon, Women’s Wear Daily and Cosmopolitan, this article sheds light on the core values of the brand and perhaps why the brand is so popular amongst millennials, uncovering the top 5 reasons why Glossier is so successful. 

Research into the brand highlighted that the brand aims for a strong relationships with its consumers, indicated by the brands tagline “Beauty products inspired by real life.” This is central to the reasons shared in the article and can be identified to be the driving forth of the company as Davis describes Glossier as a “people-powered beauty ecosystem”. Adding  “the main thing Glossier stands for is the power of the individual to choose their own style. 

The 5 reasons can be categorised as the 5C’s - Consumers/Content/Conversation/Co-creation/Community, and as we’ll see the relationship with the consumer is a running theme. 

Number one states that “Glossier is powered by a fierce and loyal dedication to its customers”, adhering to their needs and wants. In the article this is stated to be because they know who their target audience is and the Glossier customer is a ‘psychographic’, someone who understands the role beauty plays in their life. It is highlighted that because they know their target consumer well, it is this connection that they pride themselves on continuously developing that allows their to make their consumer happy 

Number two states that Glossier is constantly engaging with their consumers through mediums such as social media and sharing content on their blog called ‘into the gloss’. It is there where they aid their customers providing them with “how-to” tutorials alongside product-as-hero posts with answers to specific beauty issues. This content then generates conversations and acts as a way of finding more about their consumers relationship to the product and how the relationship can be helped.

Number three reiterates the relationship between client and customer as it states number three as conversation. Reinstating how much the company values the opinions of their customers. Davis states “ “What makes us special is the belief that the channel is the value proposition,” Davis said, referring specifically to its communication channel”. Adding that this channel helps them because “Before we even make anything, we make it because we learned from our customers what they are missing, both from a brand and a product perspective” . This statement again reiterates the aforementioned but also offers the idea that each product has the consumer in mind, which is perhaps a more tangible method of the customer involvement in comparison to other brands.

This is furthered in number four as number four is Co-creation. The article states that unlike traditional beauty brands where products are developed first, after which the brands must figure out how to sell them, Glossier works in reverse choosing to work from what have understood to be the customers needs. Thus the customer is tangibly involved in the making process. In this section an example is given of a product [Milky Jelly Cleanser] where the customers involvement is deconstructed. This point also adds that glossier are doing everything they can to involve the customer further. Davis puts across that the brand want to be best position to deliver to the customer “what they actually want”. 

Number 5 sums that their attempts to reach out to their audience has resulted in the making of a community. The brand furthers this by stating how they want their customers to bring their own communities into their community in order to grow even further, stating that they want to make their customers 'stakeholders' . Number Five develops on this stating that the community has developed physically as glossier has moved into two permanent locations, including a newly-expanded Soho flagship in New York City and Los Angeles’ Melrose Place, as well as various popup shop. 

Overall this article stamps forward that Glossier's success is down to their manner of ways they reach out to their consumers and how they execute developing this relationship. The brand and their success exemplifies how a companies trajectory coincides with their relationship with their customers  and how pivitol this relationship is. 

Using "Old Lady" To Showcase Unflattering Clothes

Today I was reading an article from the Fashion critic Robin Givhan. The topic was about how Project Runway was using the phrase ' old lady' to describe a certain style. She talks about how she has a complaint from a Woman called Carolyn Dry who loves to watch the show but stated that " I found it hard to watch to the end." 

According to Robin, Dry spoke the designer Christian Siriano who has warned the contestants to avoid looks that were "old lady" or " golden girls".Although we know his intentions were to encourage the contestants to make their designs look modern, the use of language can be seen as insulting to many Women. 

Furthermore, one designer on the show defended the fashion sense of his grandmother. However, this does disregard that the phrase was used repeatedly. 

Designer Siriano replied to Dry's complaint with " I dress women of all ages and have for years. I have female customers that I see on a daily basis that speak in these terms to describe how they want to look in clothes to me. I would never equate the term 'old lady' with something negative, but rather as a way to describe something that simply looks dated. On a personal note, both my mom and sister have great style but would never want to wear what the other does! Many women describe the way they want to look based on age and that goes both ways, young and old." 

Robin explains that " Dry would like an apology and would like it to come from Siriano but in truth, the designer is really just a stand-in for a culture that persists in devaluing older women in ways large and small." 

Siriano wrote in his email, " this is obviously a much larger conversation about society and the language we use toward one another, in general, that should be addressed. 

In my opinion, the phrase 'old lady' is a term that is definitely used a lot. Sometimes I have used it myself but never really thought on it as it was just a phrase to describe a certain style. Reading this article has opened my eyes to the certain vocabulary society uses and Siriano is definitely right in the fact that a conversation needs to happen in regards to the phrase 'old lady' and many other vocabulary that is used. 

An Instagram Without Likes

An Instagram without likes is an article I found on Forbes that caught my attention. For a while it’s been a big topic about the negative impact social media is having on today's generation and this testing by Instagram is definitely a step in the right direction. 

The test is about showing posts without the number of likes on display. Apparently, this idea was put into action to create "a less pressurized environment where people feel comfortable expressing themselves."

 However, the like count is still visible to the user which I feel isn't really resolving the problem. It's not just about who sees' how many likes you get but its also a self-esteem issue on people wondering why they haven't got as many likes as wanted or expected so keeping the like to be viewed by the user is still feeding the issue. 

Furthermore, another issue regarding Instagram and its pressures is the amount of followers people have. By removing the amount of likes issue will naturally go towards the amount of followers people have.  

Although its a positive change from Instagram, being one of the biggest social media platform feeding this issue, I feel that they need to address the issue in a bit more depth and not just focus on removing the liked for the public but to remove them all-together and also thinking about the view of followers. 

Furthermore, many people may argue and say the real issue starts from within, a self -esteem issue. Whilst to an extent that is true,  platforms like Instagram developed low self- esteem by promoting and rooting for users who create this high expectation of false reality.  By tackling the likes, followers and putting more techniques in place is a good start to handling this issue, I just hope they do think more into these tests and actions before putting them into place. 

Klarna

Recently I have come across this payment method called Klarna. Its a payment system that allows you to buy clothes from brands where you are able to pay later, usually in 30 days time. 

At first I thought of this to be a really good idea, especially from a brands profit perspection,  as you tend to order loads of items ( there is no amount limit), in the intention of just 'trying on' and not intending to keeping many of the items. However, you end up liking most of the items and paying for most of them, well thats whats happened in my experience. 

I've even had times where I've worn items out and then returned them afterwards ( the student life) and I've been over the 30 days when sending off my return- oops.. This has then lead me to think of my addictive and bad shopping habits and how Klarna  could be seen as more of a negative than a positive. 

Think about it, If Klarna is so flexible, no credit checks, any amount you like, from all of your farvioute stores, even no reminders of payments, this could lead to many shopaholics in serious debt. 

Futhermore, brands might actually be at a loss instead of a gain due to returning of items are a night out that every student tends to do. 

Overall, I have very mixed feelings about klarna and if its actually a good idea or not. What are your thoughts on this?

I MADE IT! - Christian Dior Exhibition

For ages I’ve been wanting to go to the exhibition. I tried to go once before but soon realised once I arrived that the tickets sold on the door had sold out hours ago and that people started queuing at 8am.  This time I was determined to get a ticket and see this exhibition everyone had been talking about. In fact it has been so popular they extended the date and all online ticket were sold pretty rapid. 

Waking up at 4am, travelling on the coach to London to arriving at the v&a seeing already a big queue I was praying I’d still get a ticket. Queuing for 1.30 hours we were finally let it and luckily I was able to get a ticket. 

I was really exited and ecstatic to be able to get in as I really thought i might not be able to due to the amount of people ahead of me. I’d seen pictures online of the exhibition and it looked so beautiful and amazing.

As I entered in it was really packed and hard to take everything in. I noticed I really like Christian Dior as a designer and loved almost all of the outfits designed. It was interesting to read and learn more about Christian Dior. The way they set up the exhibition was incredible and it really gave me a journey and a magical experience I won’t forget. At the end I loved it so much I decided to buy the Christian Dior exhaustion book to remember all the collections and the information about Christian Dior, even though I did also take lots of photos.

I was so glad I got in as I knew it was the last week to see the exhibition and I’d been wanting to go for ages. I’m really glad I went and it was a day out I throughly enjoyed. 

Below are some of my fav pictures I took of the exhibition.

The Amazon Rainforest

Recently In the news they talked about the Amazon rainforest catching fire and that it has been burning for 3 weeks. At first, with very little information, I thought this was due to global warming with exsessive heat causing the fire  but I soon discovered that a man had purposely caused the fire to create more land. This led me to question, how careless can society get? 

Not only this but It was also reported that the Brazilian government refused all help to put out the fire and didn’t seem to mind the fact it was all burning, what??? 

Hearing this made me so angry. Even though everyone is aware of the global warming issue, a man still has the selfish need to want to burn the most important rainforest on earth and the government doesn’t even care? The Amazon rainforest has been said to be the lungs of the earth. Without the Amazon rainforest, the global warming issue will be 100x worse than it already is, creating less time make a change. 

Thankfully the fire was put out by a rain storm after 3 weeks of burning, thank god for mother nature!! 

Although it’s good the fire was eventually put out, a big chunk of the rainforest had been burn away, leaving a large amount of poor animals and their natural habitats destroyed. 

It has been said that by 2050 it will be to late for global warming to be resolved and that if we don’t act now, the human race will become extinct. 

Although little changes have been made, for example changing plastic straws into paper, those might not be enough. At this rate, we need big changes to happen to make a difference as time is running out. 

We can only try to further educated people in this situation and hope for everyone’s sake we can start to make bigger changes to make more of an impact as it’s now a  race against time. 

Lorna Luxe Podcast

Today I listened to a pod cast with Lorna luxe, a blogger and influencer i follow on Instagram. She talks about her life, he’s struggles and how is made it to be so successful. 

She speaks about her journey as a child, being shy because she felt overweight. As she got older her first job was working in curry’s learning to sell. She explained that this job gave her skills for life and defo valuable skills into influencing and managing a business. Later on, after uni she went on to be an air hostess and after a while had to leave due to becoming very mentally ill with her weight. 

After taking time out to recover and heel she put all her spear time into Instagram and her blog. Today she is very successful with a clothing line with inthestyle and a great following on her Instagram platform. 

When talking about her life and how she got to her success, Lorna gave a few tips which I picked up on the way.

She suggested that whenever someone is struggling with a mental health issue, Terri the little habits instead of trying for the big goals as the little ones seem more manageable and over time make the big consistent changes. 

She suggest to look what you can achieve that day that you didn’t achieve the day before. 

She suggested with being an influencer to always make sure your creating content with repitition, similar in style, setting and location to make sense and gain a community. 

- To always engage, especially with other people, influencers, followers as it drives conversations. 

- Use social blade to track you stats.

- Also to write down patterns, trends, what other people are doing, where they’re going wrong, why they went wrong and learn from those and apply to your business. 

Overall, I feel that I really learnt a lot from the podcast and it really opened my eyes. It also gave me some great insights into influencing. 

Reflection - What Have I Learn't

What I have learn't from year 1 in uni and what I will take with me into year 2....

I’ve learnt from years one to not leave my sketchbook work to the last minute and to then have to go back over and remember to thought process I took.

I’ve learn't that turning up to all lessons do really matter, even if you can watch the lectures online as it keeps you in check and on a routine to attend lessons.

I’ve learn't that if you are struggling to always ask for help, no matter how stupid it seems, if you don’t ask you don’t get. 

What I will take into year 2

- More organisation and better time management 

- Starting assignments as early as possible to allow for me to reach my full potential 

- To do sketchbook work first to make the process SOO much easier. 

- To turn up to all my lessons and really engage in the seminars.

- To ask for help if I need it and always let them know what’s going on in advance. 

Overall I feel that I have learn't a lot about first year and hope to take my lessons forward with me into the new year ahead. 

PLT Podcast - Molly Mae

Today I listened to a podcast from the brand pretty little thing and their guest Molly may. 

Molly Mae is a fashion and lifestyle influencer who went on the love island reality show this year. She talks about the struggles many have face with social media after coming out of the show and how she doesn’t let the online trolling effect her as she was an influencer before the show and sort of knew how to handle that kind of stuff. She also talks about how the overloads of messages she’s received and the how it’s a massive changed from before she went it, it’s actually overwhelming but at the same time amazing. She talks about how girls come up in the street crying when they meet her and that experience is weird but at the same time heart warming experience that you influence and mean that much to people. 

She also talks about her new clothing line she has just launched with PLT due to coming out of love island and the success she had from it. She also received lots of messages of girls thanking her for the collection and how they’ve followed her from day one and have been on this journey with her.

She speaks about how her current relationship is going after coming out of love island in a relationship with tommy. She speaks about how they are planning to move in with each other very soon. 

Molly talks about her success and how she got her own place and moves to Manchester at 20. She also gives out advice to listeners saying if there anything you want to do in life make sure you go get it and have no regrets. 

Overall, I really enjoyed listening to the podcast as it has given a great insight into the influencing industry, not just the glam side to the job but also an insight into the struggles as well. 

My Summer 2019

At the beginning of the summer I was working part time at river island, I was doing this whilst I was in first year of uni travelling back and forth between home and Nottingham just to make sure I had money to live off. 

As it came to coming back home and working there without the travelling I realised I had no motivation or desire to work there anymore. After being working there for 4 years and the constant travelling semi making me resent the job, I decided to leave. I was jobless for a few weeks but it was good to have that break. 

It was then time to go on holiday to Greece. It was absolutely amazing ( see my blog on my trip to Greece for more info about what I got up to) 

After coming back from Greece I then decided I needed to get a job.

I started working part time in a little cafe down the road from my house. At first I was sure and had negative opinions on hospitality as I’d worked in it before. After a few weeks I loved it and it was a new challenge to retail and lots of new things to learn. As time went on I became more and more experience pick up more hours each time.

I then went to wireless for the weekend with my friends which was an amazing experience as I’d never been to a festival properly before so I really immersed myself into the festival experience.

After coming back for the festival i was pretty much working full time at the cafe and learning lots of new valuable skills on the way. My manager had even said he would like me to come back at Christmas and become a manager which is such an amazing achievement. 

I then had to move my uni stuff back to Nottingham into my new house for next year which was really exciting. I love the house I’m in, although it’s a bit further out, I love that it’s a house and feel more homely than halls. 

Towards the end of the summer I’ve been working on my summative visual report, course I have to submit to be able to go through to second year of uni. I decided it would probably be best to cut my hours of work whilst focusing on my project.

The project I’m working on is about the brand Dr. Martens and creating an exciting event for their brand which I’m really enjoying.

Overall, I’ve had a very busy summer but I've also had a fun and exciting one too. Next summer I’m hoping to do a bit of travelling and volunteering in a different country which should he amazing. 

Greece Day 7

Today was our day back home. I woke up feeling happy and sad. I was ready to go home but at the same time I wanted to stay. The owners of the villa had said we could stay for another week for free as they hadn’t had anyone else coming in and thought we were a really nice family which was lovely of them. Unfortunately, we couldn’t take the offer as my parents had to go back to work so the plan still proceeded to travel home in the afternoon. As it was our last day I decided to pack up the rest of the stuff I didn’t need and then spent the rest of the time chilling by the pool and getting the last bit of tan I possibly could before coming back to the rainy UK. As always time flew by on our last morning in Greece and before we knew it we were all packed up and ready to go. Once arriving at the airport and dropping our rental car back the queue to check- in was ridiculously long. After eventually dropping our bags off our flight gates had already opened and we were boarding on the plane. The flight on the way wasn’t bad at all so I didn’t feel that nervous on the way home. An hour into the flight and we started to experience some turbulence. This is when my nerves started to kick in and I became the worst nervous flightier ever!! When we hit land in the UK I was relieved. I was sad to have left Greece but also very happy to be back home. Overall, Greece was one of the best holidays Id been on in a long time! 

Greece Day 6

On the last day of our holiday we decided to visit the capital of Kefalonia Argostoli This was the place to go shopping. After an hours drive we eventually got there and found a place to park the car. After a few very hot hours of shopping and a bit of lunch, we decided it was another day for the beach. We found a nice little beach near by where we stayed for a couple of hours and relaxed. By that time it was dinner so we decided to have another meal out in Aargostoli. After our meal we headed back home as the drive took us quite long. After getting home we decided to pack up some of our belongings, the stuff we didn’t need as tomorrow evening was our journey back home. 

Greece Day 5

Day 5 we decided to visit lots of different beaches on the island. We started of with Myrtos, then on to Skala and lastly ended up in Friscardo where we ate and had our meal for the evening. Some of the beaches we visited were quite stony and others were crystal white sand. However, the sea at all of the beaches were a beautiful turquoise blue water. My little sister took googles with her and when going under the water you could see different fish swimming all around you, even at the shore of the sea. After a long day of traveling to different beaches we stopped off at a supermarket to get some dinner to cook back at the villa. We had an oven pizza and then chilled by the pool with a few drinks in the evening. We also went swimming in the pool at night as the water always seems to be warmer at night. Not long afterwards we had our showers and headed off to bed. 

Greece Day 4

Day 4 had arrived and we was half way through our holiday. We decided to go down to the harbour and do a boat tour for the day. We set off early and had breakfast down there too. I had eggs Benedict which was delicious. As Dad was the main captain, he had the lesson on how to drive the boat. After his lesson, we set off in too the Mediterranean Sea. After a while Dad allowed me to drive the boat which was such good fun. We stopped off at a few beached you couldn't get to by foot. Mooring up was the difficult part, especially onto the beaches because there wasn’t really anywhere you could moor up and the rocks would always be an obstacle you had to be careful off. After a full day on the boat and a really bad sun burns. We got off and headed out for another meal on the harbour. After our meal we stopped off at another bar. This bar happened to be the owners of the villa we were staying in. We got talking and they were really lovely people who gave us a massive homemade cake to take back with us. After the bar we went back to the villa and went to bed. 

Greece Day 3

On day 3 of our holiday we decided we wanted to go out and explore more of the Greek Island. In the visitors book in our villa many people who had stayed suggested visiting the Messalini cave.  We chilled by the pool for a few hours as the weather was really hot on this day. We then decided to go in the afternoon when the heat had lessened and the cave visits wasn’t at peek times. When we arrived at the cave, we got into a little boat where a greek man would take us through the cave. It was so so beautiful. The top of the cave had eroded away so the sun shined through reflecting on the water creating a clear blue water where you were able to see right to the bottom, which was seriously deep. After the cave visit we then went to another little village not far from the village near our villa. This village was called Sami. The restaurants were basically the same with less shops. After having our dinner we got back to the villa and headed to bed. Just as I was going to sleep I felt the whole villa shake. My sister also felt it too. We ran into my Mums room who also said she felt the same and realised its what they call an earth tremor / mini earth quake. Apparently they are really common on the Greek island and aren’t usually anything to worry about, which thankfully it wasn’t.