Fashioning February: My Space by Abby Ajay from High Street Fashionista

The British High Street is certainly having a superb week with Topshop Unique going down a treat at London Fashion Week and of course the huge success of The Look Show, which was a collaboration between high street brands and Look magazine. I am a high street girl who likes to mix pieces from Mango, Zara, H&M and asos.com so I was delighted when I came across Abby's blog. The High Street Fashionista is a blog which documents Abby's shopping life and loves of many bags, shoes and accessories. She started her mouthpiece in 2006 and since then she has graduated onto other topics in the popular culture remit. I caught up with her to find out where she blogs.

Describe the concept of High Street Fashionista.

The High Street Fashionista blog initially grew out of my love of shopping for clothes, accessories and shoes on the high street and the starting concept was to discuss my experiences of high street shopping and my aspirations towards shopping for designer clothes. I also wanted to write something for fun, which was separate from the writing I was doing for my day job (though I do blog about writing at Moody Writer. High Street Fashionista has now broadened to include general comment on popular culture and things that grab my interest as well as cataloguing my experiences of travelling, eating out, living in London, trying and failing to be a recessionista and of course high street shopping. Ultimately the aim is to explore and discuss a range of topics that are aspirational and which will resonate with all the high street fashionistas out there. 

Where do you scribe?
My blogging happens in snatched moments between deadlines for my day job as a screenwriter. Working from home, the lure of the E! channel has often proven to strong to resist and I tend to go out and write at places like the Southbank Centre, the British Library, The Women's Library, BAFTA or my local Starbucks or Costa. Sometimes inspiration comes at home and then I tend to either write in bed or in a comfy old armchair with my Macbook on my knees.

Why that place?

I like writing in public places because between writing, I like to people watch and eavesdrop, which helps me generate ideas for the blog and for my writing in general. But I also like being comfy which is when writing at home is most appealing. I tend to write straight onto my computer - basically I draft my blog posts when inspiration strikes - though I also keep a list of ideas I'd like to explore on the blog at some point. 

What is on your bed and sofa at the moment?

My working area at home is always a mess. My Macbook and Iphone have pride of place alongside, a stetson hat (I like wearing a hat when I write), a stack of DVDs to watch, books to read, magazines - Mslexia and Harpers Bazaar, my various notebooks, lots of post-its with reminders and the script that I'm currently working on.

What form of inspiration do you have on the wall 

I am a great collector of quotes, some more profound than others. Above my desk I have a postcard with the Lady Astor quote, "I married beneath me, all women do." I also have a photo of myself outside Walford East station on the set of Eastenders. I like to write down and keep extracts from books that have particularly touched me and I also tend to collect postcards and images that are particularly striking and which have in some way inspired me. I also have a cuttings book/ ideas folder where I put interesting cuttings from magazines and newspapers.

Do you keep a tidy office or are you a messy worker?

I am a horribly messy person in general (except for my shoes which are all neatly boxed) and often my desk is littered with magazines, books, DVDs, cuttings and other stuff I've collected for inspiration, which is why having a desk in a public space is a good thing for me. However my laptop folders are incredibly well organized.

You can read Abby's blog here.

You can follow her on Twitter here.