A little bit of subtle tartan in a Burberry scarf - and a Topshop alternative

For today's post I was going to show you the outfit that I have been wearing for the past two days but then I decided that "tax-return chic" was not a look that should be shared with anyone, anywhere, ever.  It will be heading into its third day tomorrow and then I will finally see the back of it - the outfit and the tax return that is. Hopefully.

Instead I'm sharing an outfit from late last week. I was given this Burberry scarf by my husband for Christmas a few years ago now. It is lovely and soft, with pretty muted colours in it, which work well with this Hobbs blazer that I have managed to get much more wear out of this year than last. I've also got my eye on this Topshop tartan scarf (£18), which comes in a few colour ways.  BUT ONLY WHEN I HAVE FINISHED THE TAX RETURN (just to remind myself.)

I also thought that this was a nice cheery picture to share on a January night.  When Mr SG said that he liked the idea of a new tea pot for Christmas, I was expecting him to identify something sleek, shiny and Alessi like - but what he had in mind was this Cath Kidston teapot. I've been trying for the last 19 years to break the bright green one that I bought at the same time as my first house but it's still going strong. I give this one - the one that we all actually like - a month!

And I know that this makes me really sad but I am ridiculously excited about these new side tables from Ben de Lisi at Debenhams. You know when you just see something that catches your eye and you keep going back to have a look? Well that's what happened with these. They're in the corner of the kitchen with two armchairs and my favourite cushion made for my birthday by my school friend who blogs over at Lottie's Interiors. She has just moved house with her family and is in the process of giving it a major overhaul which includes knocking down walls. I know that she will work wonders with it so it's definitely worth nipping over and taking a look at her progress - something I hope to do really soon in real life.

Wishing you all a very happy start to the week. The nights are definitely getting lighter. Yippee!

The 12 outfits of Christmas - Day 5 - From day time jeans to a dress for a night out...

 

This evening we went round to see some friends for our annual Christmas get together, which was brilliant. I've worn this Pia dress from All Saints quite a few times recently but never in a dressed up way, so tonight it had the full on bling treatment with an H&M statement necklace, Stella & Dot bracelet, Marc Jacobs clutch and studded Carvela heels.  It made a nice change for the dress to take centre stage as usually it has something layered either under or over it - but at least it is versatile.

During the day I wore jeans, together with Zara boots, Hobbs blazer, Mulberry bag and GAP hat.

We're off to Wales tomorrow so I hope to be able to blog whilst there but if not, I will be back on Monday. With the forecast being rain, rain and a little more rain, I don't think that there will be a lot of heels, flimsy skirts and silk going on.

As for today's gift, I love this personalised iPhone case from Not on the High Street (£25). Some people think that gifts like this have had their day but I love them. Anything that is thoughtful and individual to the person receiving it gets my vote.

It's grey, jersey and drapey - the Whistles Selma bodycon dress (without too much of the bodycon - fortunately)

This evening I've been running a Style Event at a firm of Accountants in the City Centre. I thought that I would finish the evening by showing everyone a really sexy piece of clothing - my new padded (and unworn) socks from M&S. I know, how stylish can you get? I love them - once you've had the benefit of padding in your socks, other socks just won't do. Well, it reinforces the point that I am a very "feet on the ground" kind of stylist.

For the event I wore the Selma jersey bodycon dress from Whistles (£125) which is really comfortable, not to mention a good "blank canvas" kind of dress to accessorise. I also wore a resin necklace from Hobbs and I pinched my husband's watch to wear, just so that I could keep an eye on the time and to stop me from talking all night!  My LK Bennett grey Sledge shoes had another outing. They were an expensive purchase at the time but I don't have many pairs of heels and they go with everything, so I've got my head around that one now.

I hope that everyone's week is going well so far. I am co-hosting an awards ceremony in Birmingham on Thursday night and am just hoping that the children avoid all sickness bugs and colds that are doing the rounds until then. You know that feeling when you're hanging on by a thread and just keeping your fingers crossed? That's where we're at!

Seven Boot Lane - A fabulous new boot brand, with a 10% offer to Style Guile readers

I really like that part of blogging where I get to find out about new brands that I wouldn't necessarily know about otherwise - and then share them with everyone!

 

Seven Boot Lane was established in 2012 so is a fairly new kid on the (boot) block. Having taken a good look at the site, and having read the about page - which I think reveals as much about a brand as anything else - I didn't hesitate in accepting their kind invitation to try a pair of their boots to feature on Style Guile. Actually that's not strictly true, I did hesitate just to double check that they were absolutely sure and after they said yes, I went ahead and chose the Abella boots in black leather.

 

The philosophy behind the brand is really appealing. The boots are made in Spain by traditional craftsmen and women using hand finished leather. The brand sees itself as an "antidote to modern throwaway mentality" and it creates beautiful boots that stand the test of time both in design and quality. Available not only online, take a look her to find local stockists

 

With slightly sore toes today and with the rain lashing down, I thought that it would be a great day to put the boots to the test. As soon as I put them on they felt lovely - and this time I did double check to make sure that there were no cardboard inserts before wearing them for a whole day.

 

Testament to their comfort comes from the fact that I still had them on until it was time to go upstairs this evening to bath the youngest. Up until then I had avoided going upstairs for any reason as I didn't want to take them off - cream carpets and rain swept boots don't work. How ridiculous is that? I know, off the scale in ridiculousness but I didn't really need to go upstairs for much other than the dirty washing and that won't be going far.

 

Like many, I am a sucker for lovely packaging and these boots were certainly wrapped beautifully - it's the small things that count! 

 

As I opened the box, the smell of leather really hit me. I even asked our son (poor boy, he's so tolerant) to come and smell them. When I asked him what they smelt like he said: "Proper boots." So they got his seal of approval.

These give a good side view and an idea of the height of the heel (flat but not dumpy feeling) and the height of the boot too.

 

This is the tan version of the Abella boot, taken from the Seven Boot Lane lookbook.

 

  

I love the Annie in charcoal leather (£175) which also come in khaki suede. They have that fantastic slightly beaten up look which works so well with jeans and a leather jacket, with tea dresses and thick tights, or with a short dress and tanned legs for a festival in the summer.  

  

  

The Alice charcoal suede (£150), which also come in sand suede are a great every day boot and are so versatile. A lovely alternative to leather, they add some texture to an outfit.

 

 

This photograph is taken from the Boots on Tour section on the Seven Boot Lane site, where people can post photos of themselves wearing their Seven Boot Lane boots, getting a chance to win a pair in the process.

 

   

The Angelica  charcoal boots (£175) offer a lace up work boot that can be worn up or down. They're a brilliant way of tapping into the grunge look, which is such a big look for the season.

 

 

See the Angelica's on tour! 

 

  

The Alabama in chestnut (£160) also come in black and there are biker boots, knee high boots and brogues too. There are so many lovely boots on the site that it's hard to choose a favourite.

 

 

For anyone tempted with a lovely pair of boots from Seven Boot Lane, there's a 10% discount for Style Guile readers, available with this special voucher below.

 

 

Happy shopping!

Seeing spots in Hobbs

Today it was the turn of an old favourite of mine - a navy and white Hobbs spotty dress which is fairly fitted and then flares out a little around the hem. I normally like to wear a bright Armani lipstick when I have this dress on but despite having found it yesterday, today I seem to have lost it again - I think it's probably at the bottom of a tardis bag somewhere.

 

It was the first time that I had worn winter tights and, despite shedding a tear or two for the fact that summer is now over, I'm glad to say that I have just about reconciled myself with it. Like stripes, spots always make me smile and they are a good way of adding some interest to your wardrobe, without having to embrace a trend, or a print, full on.

 

Yesterday I finally got around to sorting out my winter shoes and swapping them over with my summer ones, which has now given me more options. Much as I love my new shiny black boots, I think that it's time that I wore something else for a while, so here I am wearing Jigsaw shoe boots which are great with both dresses and trousers. I don't know about anyone else but I find something lovely and comforting about wearing old faithful pieces - it's as if I'm coming home!

One guaranteed way to make legs look longer and hips narrower....

One guaranteed way to make legs look longer and hips look narrower is to wear a high waisted, dark rinse, flared jean with heels. Tone those heels to the colour of your jeans and hey presto, you look like you are on stilts (not that I do here; in fact this shot doesn't demonstrate the point particularly well at all but I'm sure that you get my drift.)

So what is it all about then? Well the high waist on the jeans makes legs look as if they start higher up than they do, a dark rinse is instantly slimming, the width of the flare in comparison to the width of the hips and thighs makes them look narrower (which is why tapered trousers have the opposite effect), heels obviously add height and the whole trick of toning shoes to jeans continues the lines without interruption.

I bought the jeans that I am wearing in the Jaeger Boutique sale last summer. With the trend being for skinny and boyfriend jeans, flared jeans are quite hard to find on the High Street but now and again I really like wearing them - and it means that I still haven't had to wear tights! Mango has this pair for £39.99, which should do the trick.

The jumper is going to get a post of its own devoted to it and the statement necklace is an old Hobbs favourite.

A Dorothy Perkins grey quilted sweatshirt - just one way to wear it for now!

Earlier in the month I wrote about quilted sweatshirts which are everywhere at the moment. In fact quilted pieces in general are a big trend for A/W '13.

 

Despite the glorious sunshine when this photograph was taken, it was quite dull most of the day so I thought that my new quilt gem sweatshirt from Dorothy Perkins (£22) would be just the ticket. Here I am wearing it with GAP boyfriend jeans, Zara boots, yellow Karen Millen cuff (yellow and grey still remain a huge favourite colour combo of mine) and a Marc Jacobs handbag.

 

Here's a closer pic at the "gems" around the neckline which, predictably, increased its attraction to my magpie like personality.

My previous post about quilted pieces looked at quilted sweatshirts but for a couple of alternatives, there's this Hobbs  pearl skirt (£89), which I have seen in real life and it's really lovely....

And this quilted bomber jacket from Warehouse £48 which again I have seen in real life and that too is worth a closer inspection for anyone tempted to go down the quilted route.

Having a lot of grey in my wardrobe, and following on from my comment about liking grey and yellow together I have ordered the new Ingrid coat from Boden. For anyone still on the hunt for a pink coat, it also comes in pink too. I'll let you know how it all works out..... If anyone orders one I would love to see a picture!

Pink coats, pink coats and more pink coats.....

Pink coats have been dancing on the fashion periphery for a while now.  It started last winter with Jil Sander's oversized pink coat (see below) but it has taken until this winter for them to filter down on to the High Street - and for A/W '13, the pink coat is where it's at!

I don't suppose that anyone will be surprised to learn that over the years I have had several pink coats. It started with a pink Oasis trench about 9 years ago and was soon followed by a pink Boden coat and after that a Benetton one. I tell you this only because, sadly, I clearly don't have a reason to buy a pink coat this winter, which I consider to be a shame.

The deal on pink coats is this: they should be the softest palest of pink, worn oversized with rounded shoulders and clean lines, or perhaps military style, but they should be devoid of frills, peplums, or anything that makes them look too girly. So, I've done a quick whizz around to see what's on offer at the moment. Not all of them fit the "deal" above but that's good, because not everyone will want to walk around in a pale pink, oversized, coat this winter.

French Connection (£175) has this lovely pink coat. Being double breasted and with a collar, it is probably more suited to women who don't have lots of curves. I like the swing shape of this coat, which gives it a bit of a 60's feel.

The Hobbs Lacey coat in orchid pink (£239) is a favourite of mine. I like this particular shade of pink as it has a depth about it which suits paler skins in the winter (that would be me then). The oversized shape lends itself well to the whole androgynous look which is so big for A/W '13 and it will work well with trousers and brogues, or boots, as well as dresses. Grazia quite often has a Hobbs discount voucher at the start of each season so if you're tempted, it may be an idea to keep your eyes open for that.

J Crew has this pretty, very ladylike, coat which also comes in petite and tall and costs £312.15 - or slightly more if you need the tall one, which seems grossly unfair to me. It also comes in a colour similar to the Hobbs one above, but is only available in a petite and in a size 0 - so it's probably not one for the masses but someone may do really well out of it as it's in the sale for around £185. (Kylie, if you're reading this, you know where to go for your winter coat).

This is the only picture of the coat that I am dying to see, which is from Topshop and as yet not available (unless someone tells me otherwise).  Again, it's a pretty pale pink with clean lines so it's definitely one to watch.

This pretty pink Marks and Spencer (£99) military style coat is from their plus range and comes in sizes 20 to 28. I like the shaping on this coat - simple and flattering with a revere collar, angled pockets at the waist and it is also single breasted.

Zara (£179) has this masculine style overcoat. It's not dis-similar to the above style but it has less movement in the skirt part of it. There's something about black buttons on a pink coat which always stand out. Personally I prefer buttons the same colour as the coat - but not enough to change the ones on my own coat. Cheery looking soul isn't she?!

For those who prefer something less than a full length coat, Zara has this woollen overcoat for £79.99. It's great for those who perhaps travel a lot sitting down and don't want their coat to get creased, or for those who have fantastic pins. I'm a big fan of playing to your strengths so if great legs are your strength, show them off at every opportunity, cold or not!

Boden (£149) has this Mia coat which is very chic, in a classic Audrey Hepburn type of way. This bubblegum pink is a great colour and I can see it working really well at the weekend with jeans, Chelsea boots and a chunky roll neck jumper.

For a paler than pale pink coat, Reiss (£225) has this blush jacket with a waist tie.  It's a lovely design with clever detailing in the panels. Whilst a waist tie isn't for everyone, it's definitely worth a try.

 

Being cream, this Jigsaw (£265) coat doesn't really belong in this post but I fell in love with the colour, texture and shape of it, together with the fur collar. As I have mentioned before, all things fluffy, soft and furry are going to be huge this winter (a post on this particular trend will follow) and for me this coat embraces the trend in a very classic 1940's way but with a modern twist, as opposed to a less sophisticated (OK, chavtastic) kind of way. This coat would look amazing at a winter wedding - I just need one to go to now.

  

 

If a pink coat isn't your thing at all, there will be many other options available.  Zara has these pink trousers for £29.99 which are great but as ever with Zara, it's a good idea to start with the XL size and work backwards to avoid being utterly demoralised when the medium ones don't even go over your calves.

 

 

 

Warehouse (£28) has this lovely box bag in a pretty pale pink colour. I like the silver frame and the structured shape of this particular bag and it is well priced. Again, a great wedding option (hint, hint friends).

 

 

So, that's where we are on the pink coats - will you or won't you?  Perhaps you wouldn't have before reading this but now you might be tempted to.  Or like me you perhaps would love to but don't have  a reason to. Oh well, if that's the case, that's the great thing about this time of year, there's always something else just around the corner.....

 

A moment of monochrome magic, or madness perhaps?!

OK, so here's my top tip for travelling and one that I really should adopt myself. Before arriving at the check-in desk, check that you have, in fact booked in two bags weighing 20kg each (as I had wrongly assumed) and not two bags weighing 15kg each - or else you will find yourself doing a hurried re-pack in the airport which will involve stuffing towels/pants and a various selection of items into the hand-luggage of your entire family. Oops and double ooops.

 

Although we're away, I forgot to take any photos yesterday, which is a good excuse to wear the same outfit again. I did manage to give a radio interview though. There I was at the Normandy market buying nectarines in my best French when Guernsey's chief roving reporter shoved a microphone in front of my face and started interviewing me about the cost of school uniform. I didn't really have a chance to object.

 

 

As to the outfit, a week or so ago I thought that I would wear what was a largely monochrome outfit, with shades of pale pink and silver added in to soften it. This jumper is the Zara one that I have packed for our trip to Guernsey, worn with a Hobbs statement necklace, Russell and Bromley pale pink bag, silver Zara shoes and white Gap jeans. Here's a closer picture of the Hobbs necklace, which I bought in the summer sale a couple of years ago now.

Hope that you all have a fabulous bank holiday. I don't know about anyone else but I'm not buying into the view that it's the last hurrah of the summer. There's plenty of heat in that sun yet!

Mixing a little Mulberry with a little Mango and Topshop and trying to break out of the only two outfits I've been wearing for weeks!

I have found July/August to be funny months when it comes to blogging. For a start, I have only been wearing two outfits - a Joules skirt (with deep pockets for tennis balls as I never know when I'm going to be called upon for a knock about) neon t-shirt, red Topshop shoes (not for the tennis) and Cath Kidston bag; OR jeans that I found at the back of the cupboard, boat printed Joules top, with the same shoes and bag.  

 

Either outfit covers most situations that I find myself in of late but there's only so many times that you can show the same outfits in quick succession ie once, which means there's not much else to show by way of outfits for the other 29 days of the month. Only wearing two outfits does cut down on the washing though, which is good when your children are producing more dirty clothes than a rugby team.

 

The only other outfit I've worn recently is the one below, which I wore when we went out for dinner with friends on Saturday night. If the dress code is smart/casual, I don't think that you can go far wrong with some smartish trousers, a sparkly top and a pair of heels. Not only that but the trousers negate the need for perfectly smooth legs and closed in shoes negate the need for perfectly pedicured toes. I'm starting to wonder - am I turning into Waynetta slob?

The other reason that August is a tricky month for blogging is that whilst the winter collections are starting to filter through, there's just something not quite right in writing about them. Not yet at least. I just want to enjoy the summer for as long as possible. True, I can often be caught reading my mags and surfing the internet looking at what's in store but I'm not quite ready to go public with that little secret just yet.

I have also had to devote several weeks to getting the IT side of my life in order. One week was devoted to editing out all of my photos from the last few years to prevent my computer from spluttering and coming to a grinding halt. Another week was devoted to reducing my inbox from 1500 plus emails to 50 (although all I did was move the other 1450 into a sub-folder so they're still there really).

And my final reason? I banned the children from watching TV and can I just tell you that making caterpillars out of yoghurt pots/doing aqua beads/painting/sticking/gluing/spending many hours outside severely limits the time available for blogging.

So, that's where I'm at. Fortunately the photos are sorted, the emails are almost under control and having exhausted all manner of arts and crafts, I realise that the children's TV habits are so deeply ingrained that they cannot be broken entirely, as a result of which I have slightly relaxed my rules.

 

So hopefully back into the blogging world I will come, with slightly more regularity than of late.

 

Last night I was working so I was forced, kicking and screaming, out of my denim skirt/jeans combo into some Gap printed trousers, Topshop sequin T and belt, a Hobbs swing cardi and Mango shoes.

I also used my pink Mulberry handbag and Tori Burch cuff which I was given as a birthday present.

With several other posts in the pipeline and a couple of new stores and brands to write about, I hope to be able to get back to blogging with a vengeance and certainly more than once a week at least!

Mum on the Run - Outfit round up; flats to heels, trousers to errrm, trousers. That's our summer for you!

Right, I think that we'd better get straight down to it or it will be time for bed!

 

Luckily for me there have been lots and lots of ladies of late who have wanted me to style them, hence the absence on the blogging front. At the end of a long day in the shops, whilst I am buzzing with new ideas and with things that I want you to tell you about, I don't always have the capacity to do that. No doubt that will change during the summer holidays so I hope to be able to pick up the blogging a little more but for now, here's a run down of a few outfits that I have worn...

 

With photography courtesy of our five year old, things are always a little open to chance - but bless her she does really well.

 

 

The trousers that I am wearing above are similar to these silk twill cuffed trousers from Jigsaw (£95). Mine are cotton and were in the Jigsaw sale last summer. I suspect that these too will be in the sale soon. I like a bit of a cuff on a trouser. They are just that little bit different to skinnies/chinos/cigarette pants, which are the obvious trouser summer choices. They tend to have a little more room in the leg too - I suppose that they have to really or else there's nothing to nip back in at the ankle in the form of the cuff - so to that extent they are good for anyone who likes the idea of a narrower trouser but perhaps not a skinny one.

 

 

This is the Whistles jumper that I am wearing - still available in some stores but not online last time that I checked. They quite frequently do something similar though.

 

 

And this is the jacket, which I bought from Warehouse just before Christmas I think. Warehouse has a sale on at the moment and I am pretty sure that I spied one from a distance in our store yesterday on a sale rack.

 

 

I had to rely on our son taking these photos on Sunday and sending them to me as my phone was elsewhere. The colour isn't great so please excuse the anaemic look. Here I'm wearing GAP broken in khakis (these have more room in the leg than their skinny mini khakis) but the sizes are huge. I also have a Hobbs NW3 top, Miss Selfridge necklace and giraffe print converse.

Here's the same outfit but tweaked with the addition of Zara sparkly smoking slippers and my Hobbs NW3 blazer. I wanted to try the colour of the trousers and blazer together to see if they worked. I think that in real life they looked better than they do in this photo. The bag was from the Reiss sale at Christmas. Which reminds me, Reiss has gone into sale today so there could be some good bargainous purchases to be had.

 

Yesterday it was pretty cold in the morning so I decided that the Topshop spotty trousers would work just fine, together with a Warehouse sequin jumper, Oasis leather jacket, Zara boots and the same Reiss bag from the day before. These boots are great for walking around in all day long. As you all know, not only do I love a lighter coloured leather jacket but I also like a lighter coloured pair of boots too. I like to move away from black come the spring. It's one of the few ways that I can differentiate between the seasons!

Today it was lovely and warm, despite the clouds. I don't often wear cotton shirts as I find them a bit stiff and uncomfortable with a jumper over the top. However I have had this GAP shirt for a few months now so thought that it was time for an outing.

I'm also wearing GAP sexy boyfriend jeans, Hobbs NW3 shoes (from Bicester, see below), Boden sunglasses, Topshop studded belt and a pink Mulberry handbag. With 60 seconds to go before needing to leave for a meeting, I decided to paint my toes using my 90 second drying nail varnish from Rimmel. Fortunately despite the 30 second time difference which wasn't in my favour, things turned out OK.

Phew! So that's a quick whizz through a few outfits. I hope that all is well with all of you and I'm so sorry for not having responded to your comments recently.  I appreciate the time that you take to leave them and I will get back to you soon!