Stella and Spot

Yesterday seemed like a casual morning as I was off to work at 2pm. The snow hadn't really hit us here and I decided to dig out my beloved converse that haven't seen the light of day for a few months. I love the dot print on them as it is slightly unusual and the grey works with anything. I also wore some old Boden trousers which are really starting to have seen better days which is such a shame and a jumper from Kin at John Lewis. I love this range, it is very similar in style to Whistles but certainly more affordable. In fact, that reminds me to check out the spring range..off go google...

I have recently been made aware of the most beautiful range of jewellery by a company called Stella and Dot. I was lucky enough to get the see much of the spring range at a party recently and fell I love with so much of it. I ordered a beautiful yellow necklace which I was pleased to receive really quickly and a lovely simple gold bracelet. I thought this was the perfect accompaniment to my simple outfit. I cannot recommend the jewellery enough, it is so pretty and seems so much better quality than anything on the high street. I'm not knocking good old Primark for its £3 bargains but a girl needs a treat hey!

Love leather

So finally I have sorted my photos and got everything. Connected, uploaded, saved (I think?!) and working so the blog is up and running again. It's lovely that so many of you have been reading and enjoying and and asking about my updates. I love it that you are Kent up to date on all my wardrobe experiments!

It's still well and truly winter hey, that sucks! I am longing for the spring and my next quest is to find some lovely coloured ballet pumps as I never seem to find any that fit me? Any recommendations? 

Sometime late last year I managed to find my dream leather skirt. I seem to have a list of perfect 'wants' and love it when I find one. This is from Whistles which you will know by now is one of my favourites. They had a great 25% off promotion and so it made it a more reasonable price. It's bad that despite buying it sometime ago I've only worn it a couple of times. I find that is is actually pretty versatile and have worn it for an evening out and a day shopping. I love the slight a-line style and it is a gorgeous buttery soft leather.

For the daytime look I've teamed it with a grey Whistles tee and a necklace from H&M. For the more evening look I'm wearing a fab yellow top from Primark and thick black tights. The necklace is from Primark. I also wore a thick ponte fabric blazer and print scarf also from Whistles. You'll notice the piles of clothes on the back as I had a wardrobe explosion! The rail literally gave way. I don't think this means anything ha,ha!

Going green

I am twins less today and went into town to meet my Mum for a browse round rather shops, I say browse as I have so much to pay for this month annoyingly! As the weather is still quite warm I decided  to resist tights for another week and go bare legged even though my tan has all but faded. I wore a green Boden skirt I bought from a Preloved Boden selling page. I had been after it for a while but they still seemed to sell for quite a lot on eBay deity being a couple of summers old so was happy to pick this perfect one up for £11 a few weeks back. It was too long for me but some simple sewing meant this was easy to sort. 

I wore it with my favourite ankle boots and a Gap denim shirt which I am loving. The necklace is from H&M and my Mum just bought it back from Canada for me, this is the second day in a row I've worn it so she made a good choice! The bag is a fabulous Mulberry.

Loving the J Crew

Well I think it is safe to say that I have failed my no buying September challenge. I don't even think I can be blamed, first Boden go and slash their sale prices to am all time low and I would have been stupid not to stock up on some bit for the twins for next summer. And clothes for them doesn't really count anyway. Ok, ok I may have selected a couple of bargains for myself as well..whoops!

Secondly my friend has been to LA with work. He kindly offered to bring back some bits for me and so I sent him with a list of things from my favourite US shop, J Crew. We have one here as well now on Oxford Street but it is so crazily expensive by comparison it pains me to buy anything knowing it will be so much cheaper there. Top of my list were these sweatpants that they are showing more dressed up with heels and look amazing but it's not really an everyday look for me so I'm wearing them with an old old old Abercrombie and Fitch shirt and the silver Topshop pumps. I think this really works as a casual look and they are really comfy. 

He managed to pick up a few other bargains as well, dresses from Banana Republic, another favourite and good old Gap too. A couple of bargain tees and a statement necklace from J Crew as well. I'm sure I will be showing them on here at some point. 

I may have mentioned before that I really do not like leggings! Or at least I thought I didn't. I disliked them on everyone, thought they looked horrid and unflattering on all and would never consider them. For some reason this week I decided to give some Sainsbury's ones a try and I am converted. I love them! They are thick and comfy and practical and look cute too. I take it all back leggings and I'm sorry for giving you such a hard time! They seem to go with everything in my wardrobe although I wore them with a simple white tshirt this week.

Just testing the water a bit with this one but I have a tonne of things I am currently selling on a Facebook page and am wondering if I should post any on the blog? I've seen it work on other blogs, would this be something anyone is interested in?

New trainers

Today felt like a more casual day, I did some housework in the morning and then met my friend for a run at Attenborough Nature Reserve. I haven't ran for about 3 and half weeks so wasn't looking forward to it but was happy to do 5 miles with reasonable times. I decided that my running trainers really have had it though and although I'm not spending money on clothes in September I reasoned that these were more a necessity than a want. I have been thinking about it for a few weeks and took a trip to Decathlon yesterday and ended up with these lovelies...

I decided to wear my fabulous Maharishi trousers, they are so comfy and soft and the best 'casual' trouser I own. I cannot recommend them enough. It's like wearing pjs all day! I wore them with a pink to from White Stuff and a Gap jumper.

Tomorrow I'm off to town with my Mum and Catherine for the ultimate test of will power. No shopping for me!

Hot pink

I love this fabulous punk necklace and think that it works well with this striped Joules tee. I wore this with some jeans from Sainsburys. I haven't bought any clothes for me from here before but they recently had 25% off clothing and I picked up these jeans! a pink jumper and some great Chelsea boots and am really impressed with them.

The second outfit is a dress I got recently from Topshop. I never really shop here either but I was in Outfit where there are a number of shops within one and Topshop is one of them. I saw this dress and it is very 'me' I think it will work well with tights as we move into the autumn as well. Today I wore it with a long sleeved Gap tshirt.

Bicester bargain

I am so guilty of forgetting what I actually own and never using things, this was a typical example of this. I bought this beautiful Coach bag at Bicester Village a few weeks ago, it was an amazing bargain. I paid £159 for it and it was originally priced at £450! I absolutely love the salmony colour which actually seems to work with most things, despite being a colour it works really well as a neutral. Here I have teamed it with some simple grey jeans from Next. I really like these, the are from their everyday range and were only £26 and a great fit. 

I wore a navy sweater from KIN at john Lewis and some simple ballet pumps that I have had for ages from Tesco.

 

The September challenge

I have decided not to buy any clothes for the whole of September. I really don't need anything new and have, as usual, treated myself to a few bits post pay day! Very naughty and unnecessary. So, I wondered if I could manage with no shopping for a month, really, how hard can it be?! I will keep you posted. This includes the twins as well, they have more new clothes than me I think.

In the mean time I am pleased to see that the sunshine seems to be back. This week is meant to be nice in Nottingham at least. I had packed away mine and the twins summer clothes but have got them back out again to make the most of the remaining summer. 

Last night I spend a fabulous evening with my lovely friend Natalie. We were both child free for once and decided to treat ourselves to a night out. We went to Bills in town for a great meal. This place is great, they serve really nice, well priced food. I had the ribs! The breakfast there looks amazing too, something that I definitely want to try. We then headed to the Boiler Maker cocktail bar, we were lucky enough to get a table pretty quickly. In true classy style we then got the last bus home,can't beat it!

Last night I wore a Whistles dress that I sourced off eBay last year and have worn a handful of times, I really love it. I also wore my amazing Whistles heels that kill my feet and cost me a fortune but I don't care as they are beautiful. I experimented with a hot red lip as well!

Resisting the heating

What has happened to the weather? Grrrrr it is freeeezing and I am fed up of the winter already, how long until the spring comes? Ok I know it's not even remotely anywhere near winter yet but I really dislike the cold! I have resorted to putting away our summer clothes and sorting my winter boots and tights today. But I will not put on the heating!

I needed something to fill my time as I have been so poorly over the last few days I even had to give up double time at work! Annoyed does not begin to cover it. It seems a horrible tummy bug has been doing the rounds and the twins and I have both been suffering. I spent all day yesterday in bed and although I got up and dressed, eventually, today I wanted comfort so went for these grey jeans and cute top from Topshop. I just spotted it the other day and it is not a style I would normally go for but I've really liked wearing it and it's really comfy and I think it looks quite cute on. I like the pinky/nude colour, I'd be tempted to get it in a soft grey as well.

The jeans are Next and the white vest top is Primark.

Dinosaurs

I didn't take any blog photos last week as we were enjoying a week away in Norfolk, we had a fabulous time playing on the beach, exploring dinosaurs and stuffing our faces with ice cream and fish and chips. 

It's back to reality, although not back to work until Friday which is nice. And what's happened to the weather? It certainly seems to have taken an autumnal turn which I am really not happy about. I really am a sunshine and summer girl, I could happily live in the heat all year round and do not enjoy the hassle of winter, wrapping up all the time, worrying about the rain, iced up windscreens, days and days of left over slushy snow, I could go on...

I'll try to make the most of what left of the summer, it's still only August after all. My outfits over the past few days have been the following;

 

A simple mustard yellow top in the sale from Joules with a floor length navy skirt from Next which is so comfy and easy to wear. I also wore a chunky gold necklace from H&M.

It must be turning cooler as I have worn jeans! I love to wear skirts and shorts and love in them all summer but these pink lovelies are Boden ones teamed with a striped Joules tee.

Finally today's outfit which I wore for a stressful shopping trip to town, twins and town do not mix! I don't tend to take them unless I really need to but with a certain someone's birthday looming this week I really needed to get sorted! Yes, you Mother! I wore these fab Boden patterned trousers and had three people randomly come up to me and say how nice they are and where are they from! I wore them with a navy Primark vest and Banana Republic cardigan.

And just look at this little monkey! How am I meant to take blog photos with George weaving in and out my legs?! I think he thought his cool checks and dinosaur tee deserved a mention!

Sunshine

How absolutely fabulous has the weather been, long may it continue I say! I could easily live in a country where it is warm and sunny all year round. I've noticed that the autumn/winter clothing is starting to creep in as well. I do not like this! It is too early and too sunny to be thinking about that.

I love a simple summer dress for when the weather is nice and it makes a change from shorts. Here are two of my favourites. The blue one is a recent Boden sale bargain that I only ordered on a whim as it was reduced so much and really love it. The other was a bargain off one of the Facebook selling pages I have mentioned before, it is from Fat Face and I think it was £8. Can't really go wrong. I wore this one for lunch with a lovely friend recently. To mix it up slightly I paired it with some tan leather and leopard print sandals. I chose turquoise accessories and the colours complimented each other really well.

Falling in love with vintage, again...

As those of you who have been readers if the blog for a while will know I fall in and out if love with vintage now and again. Inspired by the programme 'This old thing' I am well and truly back in love again. If you have not caught it yet, it's  on Wednesday evenings and shows how fabulous vintage clothes with a modern twist can be. I have dug my clothes and jewellery out and dusted off the sewing machine so we shall see how I get on. I did pick up these fabulous full leather shoes in the Sue Ryder vintage shop in Beeson for the bargain price of £3, they are super comfy and so cute.

As the weather has been so lovely I have been making the most of my summer clothes. I am completely lusting over a fabulous white sundress that I simply cannot afford so in the mean time I will have to stick to my £12 Matalan skirt which I love and a simple white vest. I think before the summer is out I will be needing a pair of silver sandals as well, I think they would work with so much. On this occasion I wore my simple tan sandals that go with everything (not shown) that are also Matalan and a Boden summer tote.

Dare to dungarees

I cannot tell you how much I love these new dungarees! I picked them up this week for £7 from Primark after wanting some for a few weeks and deciding if I would dare to wear them. As the weather is slightly miserable today it seemed like a good day to go for it. I have teamed them with a striped Boden Breton and some white pumps. 

Finally it's mine...

I have been looking for this floral sundress for a couple of summers now. I first saw it in the sale at Hobbs in their NW3 range. For some reason and kept going back to it and yet never bought it. I have been scouring eBay for one for sometime now but they seem to go for more than I want to pay. Amazingly I saw this one, brand new, in my size, and it was finishing at 9.30am one Monday morning. I managed or get it for a bargain price of £12! 

I am so pleased with it and it fits perfectly, I look forward to wearing it more throughout the summer. I just have to show off my new bag which was also a bargain. Last Saturday we took a trip to oxford for the day, it was a beautiful sunny summers day and we had a great time shopping, walking by the river and enjoying afternoon tea. But hey, who am I kidding, it's all about Bicester Village on they way back isn't it? I picked up this fabulous bag from Coach, it was massively reduced and I am in love!

A swish and a twirl

I ordered this fab-u-lous skirt from Next a few weeks ago and it has been hanging in my wardrobe ever since. I have had it out on occasion, tried it on, even bought a vest to wear with it but had still to decide if it was a keeper. I find I am often like this, I regularly buy things, get them home and then change my mind. In fact, I am terrible for it. But I like to make an informed choice! And by the time I get home I've often changed my mind, or remembered I have something similar...terrible, I know, I know...

But I digress, I tried it on again yesterday. I was going to town with the twins and my Mum and decided to just go for it. It is a little different to something I would normally wear and it has a lot of fabric but I loved it. It felt really comfy and I felt like it looked nice. And George said 'mummy's pretty' when I put it on so what better confirmation could I need! 

I wore it with a simple white vest from Topshop and my trusty Matalan sandals.

Animal prints

On Saturday a good friend and I decided to hit the town for some food and cocktails! Where else could  we eat than the fabulous Annie's Burger Shack? I cannot recommend this place enough, it offers purely burgers but every type of burger you can imagine. On this visit I had one with pancakes, bacon and maple syrup inside the burger. Amazing! 

We then headed to The Boiler Maker cocktail bar, I had been dying to try it out after hearing rave reviews and it certainly did not disappoint. I think between us we tried most of the cocktails they had to offer. Who can beat a flask of cocktail served on dry ice inside a book or your drink sealed in an envelope and a snail stuck to the side of the glass? Or our personal favourite, served in a sharps waste bin with a syringe in that contained a mixer you squirted into the drink? Crazy!

All that required a fabulous outfit and I love this dress from Whistles, I got it off eBay last summer and always like wearing it. I teamed it with pink heels and a Topshop leather jacket. My necklace was from H&M.

To recover on Sunday morning a spot of retail therapy was in order. For this I decided to continue the aminal theme and wore a Cath Kidston safari print sundress. I have had this for a while and never seemed to get around to wearing it but it was cool and comfy in the sunshine (and shops!)

The long skirt

I bought this skirt in total impulse from Next a few weeks as I fancied giving a long skirt a trying after seeing a few around and liking the look. It was a great price at only £20 and is lovely fabric and really comfy. I had it sitting in my wardrobe whilst I debated over whether to keep it or not but decided to step out my comfort zone slightly and go for it.

I was having lunch at the Bottle Kiln and then seeing my lovely (cake providing) friends this afternoon so it seemed as good a time as any. I wore it with a lovely red tshirt that I picked up from Joules yesterday after finding out the offer 15% 'blue light' discount. It is definitely worth checking this out as it seemed to cover loads of professions including nurses and voluntary work as well. 

I am wearing my chunky gold collar necklace from Hobbs which George refers to as 'Mummys apples!'  I also wore my Primark denim jacket and some navy peep tipoe flats from Primark. 

Pyjama party

I absolutely love these new trousers from Boden. The second I saw them I knew that they would be just the thing for me, my decision was picking the colourway. They also come in pink and navy and I am very tempted with the pink too. I'm keeping my eye on them, the reviews are not great (people are you crazy!) so I'm hoping that Boden have a high level of stock left and put them in the sale at 50% off! I know that they do look a little like pyjamas but I really like them, they are so soft and comfy and look really cute. They are going to be lovely with sandals if this rain ever stops. I wore them the other day teamed with a grey Matalan tshirt, white pumps and a denim jacket both from Primark. My necklace is really old, I can't even remember where it is from as I have had it for so long but is a perfect match for the trousers. 

Speaking of cute sandals, I need to collect the new lovelies that I recently ordered from the Next directory. Last week I was lucky enough to complete some market research that involved trying on shoes and being paid for the pleasure! It was literally my perfect job! But I immediately spent the money on new shoes, typical.