Ok, ok, ok…FDJ LDN has been a wee bit MIA this past month, but that is for good reason. Life is to be lived and not always to be documented and this past month have been particularly full of life! It has been full of birthdays – mine and the fella’s. Life is full of shade and sun, so to celebrate, we thought we would come together and enjoy the Light and the Dark side! Namely through feeling the force by visiting the Star War Identities exhibition at the O2, after high jinks celebrating with friends and fun the night before in London. Click this way and discover debauchery, drinks and droids…

To me, birthdays are about gathering favourite people and doing favourite things and so for my BBNO (Big Birthday Night Out), I just wanted good food, good people and great cocktails! If I’m after a fail safe good night out, I tend to head to Farringdon for its glut of fab bars and food joints all within tottering in high heels distance of each other.

We decided to line our stomachs with good hearty fare in the form of Pieminster’s “The Mothership” – a mountain of mash, pie of your choice, mushy peas, gravy and a smattering of crispy shallots, which we enjoyed at one of Farringdon’s cosiest pubs, The Hope. I mean look at it…look at it! This bad boi was utterly yummilicious *drool*.

Full of food and ready to party, we hot-footed it across to possibly one of my favourite chain of bars, Be At One in Farringdon. This dinky delight never fails to bring the fun, as well as an uh-mazing Happy Hour deal with 2-4-1 cocktails, kitsch interior and banging tunes. AND if you want the 2-4-1 party hearty times to last, simply download the “Appy Hour” app to your phone and you get an extra hour! Sweet! I must admit, we were too busy gabbing with our mates and getting our booty shake on to get lots of Insta-worthy snaps, but heck! That’s usually the sign of a VERY good night!

After a night of relatively well executed debauchery, it was time to wend our way home. Thankfully this was done in style in the form of our executive car from Blacklane! Seriously, if you are after a ride home in luxury that is friendly, punctual and fabulous, as well as excellent value for money – you need to get yourself a Blacklane account. Living out in Essex can sometimes cut a night out short as getting home can be a logistical nightmare. But having found Blacklane, a BNNO can go on for longer and won’t cripple your bank balance if you split the cost between a few of you. I must also our driver Seyed was utterly amazing, even waiting for us a bit longer whilst we were saying goodbyes and providing friendly chat as we journeyed back to Essex. Truly door to door service that made our night!

The next day was a bit of a bed-bound blur of Netflix and snacks, nursing quite the hangover! BUT the day after it was time for Mike’s inner geek to implode all over the Star Wars Identities exhibition at the O2…and I must admit, mine imploded too. This interactive exhibition has something for everyone and is choc-full of not just style, but substance.

At the start of the exhibition, we were given an ear piece connected to a sensor that picks up when there is audio during the tour, as well as an interactive identity wristband. As we wound our way through the cavalcade of costumes, props and paintings that would set any Star Wars but’s heart of fire, we came across check interactive check points to scan our identity wristbands that interact with the pieces on display. As we journeyed from the light to the dark, we answered questions that would determine our Star Wars Identity! Before answering the ultimate question…will you join the Dark side or choose the path of the light…?

Well DUH! Of COURSE we chose to be goodies! At the end of the exhibition, you scan your wristband to discover, from all the choices you have made through your journey, who your Star Wars Identity is…and yup, that’s me below on the right. Your eyes do not deceive you – I am a blue bassoon-wielding Ewok musician called RayRay! Score!!!

Would I recommend the Star Wars Identities exhibition? Is Darth Vader Luke’s father?! Yes I would. It looks amazing, there’s lots to see and do and it’s a ruddy good giggle to boot!

All in all, this month of birthdays has been the perfect time to enjoy and refocus on things with the people that count in life, doing the things you love. This year I feel will be a year of change and all for the better. And you, fair fillies, are coming along for the ride.

A bit of time away from FDJ LDN HQ has made me realise a fair few things. A step away can sometimes lead to a big step forward. Taking away the pressure of content going up at regular points a few times a week on the blog for the sake of it has made me look at what was actually going up. Writing for the sake of writing SOMETHING is not always the best idea. That overused adage that quality is more important than quantity is hella true! So I will only be posting when I feel that quality is high or something I am particularly burning to write about. Therefore I am working on improvements across the blog and social media, with lots of exciting collaborations with brilliant brands coming this way – with improved photography to boot! Now THAT is truly the next great step on this “Fashion Du Jour-Ney”!

Until next time fillies,

Leigh at Fashion Du Jour LDN HQ x

P.S. Want to make FDJ LDN part of your 2017? Well, it’s time to join the mailing list! Simply click the “Subscribe” button at the top right of the page. And BOOM! All the latest FDJ LDN posts will be delivered straight to your Inbox! You can also follow us on Bloglovin’. Social media fiend? Then get to following us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.