On the Run - A blue and white outfit consisting of Zara, Gap, Converse and Orla Kiely

You know how there are only a couple of months each year when there isn't a school holiday of some sort or another (usually November and possibly March, depending when Easter falls or June, depening on when spring half term falls)?

Well there are also a couple of months in the year when I make a conscious effort, as opposed to a half hearted attempt, not to shop. One of those months is July and the other is around February or March time.

I figure that by this time in the season, I will probably have filled most of the gaps in my summer wardrobe and I then start thinking about what my winter wardrobe may be lacking. So, as you might to expect, that's where I add a caveat to my "no shopping" policy.

The summer sales can be a good place to pick up winter coats and winter boots - which are usually the biggest items of expediture in your wardrobe. Unless you are after the latest "must have" styles for coats or boots, then great savings can be made, hopefully leaving more funds available for next seasons' every day items - where you may want to tap into the trends a little more.

I often find that it is also a good time to pick up accessories and I sometimes get a belt or an evening bag from Reiss when their sale starts [keep your eyes on this space for news of the Reiss sale].

With LK Bennett, Hobbs, Jaeger, Ted Baker, House of Fraser, Harvey Nichols and many others currently in sale, now is definitely a good time to look out for those staple items. I often look at brands that would normally be too pricey on an every day basis but which, with the benefit of a hefty discount, become more accessible.

Anyway, on to the outfit.  By the time it came around to getting the children from school it was relatively warm, so I decided to wear my white Zara cotton blazer, which hasn't seen the light of day since this time last year.

I'm not generally a t-shirt kind of girl but I like this one that I bought from French Connection a few years ago now.  The blue is quite strong, which is good for a pale girl like me!

Sticking with the blue and white theme - again because having run I only had about 10 minutes to shower and change - I wore my blue converse and grabbed my Orla Kiely bag, which a couple of weeks ago I had filled with all of the remnants from my other handbags when I sorted them out.

So, I now have a large pile of receipts, tickets, half opened packets of oat cakes, pens and all other manner of detritus which lurks at the bottom of my handbags, to sort out. I liked the bag with the outfit though so I'm cool about it. (In as much as I could ever use the word "cool" to describe anything about myself!)

On the Run - At a "summer" BBQ in a thick jumper, jeans, scarf - essentially a winter outfit really!

I find the varying approaches that people take to clothes really interesting.

In addition to going to the Pet shop today (weed for the fish) and looking around several garages (husband's choice of activity for Father's Day) we were invited to a friend's BBQ and fundraising event. [Re the photo below, the four year old was directing and demanded that I crouch down.]

Being cold makes me miserable so I decided to dig out one of my heaviest jumpers, wear my jeans and just not worry whether I was up to the mark or not.

When we arrived I was greeted by a friend who was wearing a couple of vest tops layered together.  She was working on the principle that, come rain or shine, she was going to pretend that it was warm.  Whereas I - being arguably more negative than her - just couldn't face being cold any more.

Two friends, both female, same event, similar outlooks on life, similar size - two utterly and completely different approaches to getting dressed.

I could just about face baring my ankles but it was my only concession to the fact that it was June. Otherwise it was winter all the way with a Warehouse cable knit jumper, Gap real straight jeans, Jigaw striped top, Lola Rose scarf and Jones flats.

There were some lovely outfits at the BBQ - blazers, skirts, bare legs, nice jewellery - none of which I was sporting but I wasn't cold, I didn't totter off any heels and I didn't mind when the four year old launched herself at me covered in chocolate.

In my view when it comes to daily dressing, styling yourself for comfort and to suit your lifestyle definitely has to rank up there as two of the most important criteria.

On the Run - With 10 minutes to shower, wash hair, dress and do make-up before dashing out of the door again!

I got myself into one of those slightly sticky situations this morning. As our youngest had been up since 7.15am watching TV, and would have stayed there quite happily for the entire day, I decided that we needed to do an activity.

The problem was that I also wanted to squidge in a run before we went. Given that the run took longer than I thought, which was not as a result of going further than I thought but rather being a bit of a lazy whatsit because I didn't have my friends to keep me amused, I had precisely 10 minutes on returning home to shower, get dressed and do my hair and make-up. 

 

I can say with certainty when I left the house that I was clean but the hair and make-up didn't feature at all. It was not until I got to the gym class that I dealt with the make-up, where I sat in the gallery and applied it. I probably looked a bit chavtastic in the process but it was better than not wearing any at all.

It was then on to the school fete where I was serving on the Pimms stall. Result!

Clearly the outfit was incredibly hurried and would have benefited from a bit of ruching of the jumper, but frankly I was just pleased to have pulled something even half decent together.  It would also have been better if the school hall didn't have a teracotta floor as it clashed a bit - but there we go.

As a result of speed and having not having been able to wear jeans for a while due to working, I opted for Cos grey jeans, a Jigsaw coral jumper, Mango scarf, Oasis leather jacket and Carvela wedges.

As I say, a bit of ruching of the jumper would have been good but given that I hadn't taken a look at any of it in the mirror, I was happy enough.

I hope that you are enjoying your weekend and no, I didn't have any of the Pimms.  The 11.30am to 1pm slot was a bit early for me but you will be pleased to know that I have made up for it this evening with my husband's fab cocktails. Hic.

On the Run - A plain outfit of Cos, Hobbs and LK Bennett with a statement silk scarf.

You know sometimes you just have those days when you wake up and think "Oh hec, what I am I going to wear today?" Well, I had one of those this morning.

As I knew that I would be in the shops styling all day, flat comfy shoes were a must.  The rain ruled out dresses and skirts, which only really left trousers.

Having worn my spotty trousers yesterday, my Zara textured (for want of a better word) ones the day before and ruling out chinos and jeans on the basis that they weren't smart enough, I headed for my faithful (and now nearly on their last leg) Cos trousers. I swear that they are getting tighter by the day - they must be losing their elasticity. Or something.  

 

Oh flip, so what to put with the trousers. There are several sayings I have in life. The first is: "If in doubt do nothing." It's an absolute gem when it comes to making difficult decisions but doesn't really apply when needing to get dressed in a hurry in the morning.  So, I reverted to another favourite saying of mine: "Keep it simple." Yep, I liked that for today. So it was head to toe navy, including the bag, with the addition of one statement piece, which was a Hobbs silk handpainted scarf.

Impressively, the photos were taken by the munchkin before school. I had to laugh - she holds the phone so near to her eyes when taking a photo that she goes cross-eyed. It's very funny to see.

As for silk scarves, I only have this Hobbs one and the Hermes one that I bought from the Buy My Wardrobe event, but it was really nice to wear for a change.

Our son has returned from his trip to Wales with school, utterly and totally exhaused.  We had one of those special moments when he arrived back. His sister threw her arms around him and said "I love you Fred. Come and see how much my snow [sun]flowers have grown." And she led him by the hand into the conservatory to take a look.

Today's outfit: Cos trousers and top, Hobbs shoes and scarf, LK Bennett bag

On the Run - A mixture of Topshop "Vintage" and Topshop "current" (ish)

Given that our youngest was having a meltdown when we left her friend's house, I am amazed that I secured her co-operation in taking photos 5 minutes later when we arrived on the drive.  Some are a bit "headless" and some are a bit "shoeless" and most are a bit fuzzy - but I think that you can get the idea.

To say that the photos were hurried is an understatement.  It would have been good to have had a couple more seconds to adjust the outfit out a little but nevermind - that's life in the fast lane for you!

I felt that these Topshop trousers would be the right weight for today's weather and started with those as the basis for my outfit, putting them with my Gap white shirt.

I also whipped the pale pink belt from my blue Next chinos and wore that too.  Ordinarily I discard belts that come with trousers as I think that often they are quite cheap looking - but I reckon that a pale pink patent belt could look cheap however much it cost! It's a bit like Dolly Parton saying how it costs her a lot of money to look as cheap as she does.

I then dug out these Topshop shoes which I bought prior to child number 2, I think it was - so over 10 years ago now at least - but which I had only worn once. Thinking that they were really high, I had been put off from wearing them but in fact they weren't that high at all - although the slim heel would have made it difficult to run in them.

I had a chance to have a quick whizz around the Selfridges sale before finishing for the day. As with the Marni for H&M debacle, the grabbing and throwing around of the bags, in particular, made feel quite sad. 

There were Mulberry bags reduced from £800 to £400 which, whilst not damaged, had clearly been man-handled.  I'm all for using nice pieces, rather than keeping them in the Wardrobe [rant warning!]but there's no forgiving the way that some people treat things which aren't even theirs and which others may want to buy. 

The clothes were in a much better state with Vivienne Westwood dresses half price.  At £450 they still weren't cheap but such a discount would definitely make them affordable for some. Ted Baker and Coast had great offers too as did LK Bennett, Jimmy Choo and Prada. As for the High Street - ladies, if you want to shop, now is the time to do it. There are sales galore!

On the Run - An outfit of Zara, Clarks and Ted Baker for a day in the shops

With the eldest two away for a few days, it was left to our 4 year old to take today's photo. If she had refused, I had it in mind to train those daft fish to do something useful but luckily she complied.

It has been a really busy week so far as I did a Wardrobe on Monday and a full day shop today. I have  a further half day shop tomorrow and a full day shop on Friday.  All the ladies I work with are really lovely though and all have interesting and varied life experiences so we always have a great, if tiring, time. To anyone who is waiting to hear from me - I will get to you I promise, just as soon as I can.

Today I wore the Zara trousers that I featured here. I always find that lighter trousers are a little more difficult to wear and require some styling, which is why I put them with a longer Zara cardi (for a little bottom coverage) and heels (for a touch of leg lengthening).  The top I wore was the Ted Baker one which I also wore here. 

As with an outfit that I wore the other day, it was a slightly different colour palette for me than usual but it was nice for a change and the sun came out so really, what more could a girl want? (Other than shoes which don't blister, as mine did, which would be a start!)

On the Run - A tale of two (or three) fishes with some Hobbs for good measure

A few weeks ago I told you how my husband had been out and bought some fish for the children. The three goldfish, Fudge, Cola Cube and Chubbie, cost less than £5 in total.  Last night we worked out that said fish, however, have cost us over £50 - not what Sir Alan would consider a good return on his investment. In fact, it's not a return at all.  

Not one to do things by halves (which is lovely trait of my husband's) he has ensured that these fish are living in 5 star accommodation.  They have already had three different filters, two new buckets for the water changing procedure, coloured gravel, some bizarre plant, things for them to swim through and get this, this weekend he is planning on going to buy them a lighthouse. Our evenings are spent fighting over the iPad - with us both wanting to look at various "nets" my choice being net-a-porter, his choice being fish-net.com. With all the pumps and bizarre looking equipment everywhere, the kitchen looks as though Heston Blumenthal is about to come and conduct some weird experiment.

What any of this has to do with clothes I have no idea - other than the fact that I am sure that I could find an equally meaningful way of spending £50!

I wore this outfit yesterday as I was styling a lady at home with the result that I didn't have to walk too far, so could wear heels.

I like the shape of this look - (not just here but in general, if it suits the body shape). It's quite long and lean and also forgiving, with the wider jeans balancing out hips and the swing cardi disguising a less than lean upper body.

The combination on top isn't that clear but I am wearing a cream sequinned top from Topshop with a Hobbs swing cardi over the top.

As part of my steadfast refusal to wear boots or socks, I am wearing the closed in Hobbs slingbacks which I bought from Bicester a few months ago, which are great for when the weather isn't too warm (such as when I bought them in APRIL!) 

I also decided to use my pink Mulberry, which too was from Bicester. I quite like a bit of a pink and purple mix as long as there isn't too much and there are enough neutrals to break it up.

And now on to the winner of the scarf envy Union Jack scarf - the winner, Pat, caught my eye with this entry:

I deserve to win the scarf as I'm
 

Just   Utterly   British,    Incredibly  Loyal,   Extraordinarily  Eccentric

PS I love your blog, which I discovered through W & H.  In my 60s, I'm hopeless with fashion & style, it's a real help!

Apparently the acronym came to Pat after attending a Jubilee concert at the Albert Hall - so it was all very apt.

I loved Pat's breezy, fun and carefree attitude. Whilst the compliment was lovely, I chose Pat as the winner because I can imagine that she will really enjoy wearing the scarf and that it will make her smile.

On the Run - Interpreting Burberry the Style Guile way (with some success). There was room for improvement but Coronation Street called!

So how is that yesterday I was in the garden, merrily planting up my pots, sun shining, feeling rather hot at times - and here I am today, heating on, needing a bath to warm up and pinching my hubby's cashmere jumper to keep warm? I just don't get it.

Mind you, one piece of good news - I've had a real coup when it comes to helping out at the school fete on Saturday.  I've been asked to help out in the Pimms tent. Result.  I have been asked to get there at 11.30am but it doesn't start until 12pm so I can't imagine what "prep" I will do in that first half hour.

As I was reading the Sunday Times Style section yesterday I thought that I might have a go at interpreting one of the outfits that they showed. Successful or not, it has to beat wearing jeans.  The skirt that they used was a leather one but I don't think that it matters that mine was a cotton job from Zara.

My usual photographer has gone on a school trip so I had to draft in a replacement - and you know how hard it is to get up off the settee when you are 13.

True, I am by no means as young, or as long, or as leggy as the model and the whole sitting down angle isn't great but I reckon that with a few tweaks I would give it a whirl (but Coronation Street was beckoning so I didn't have time to faff.)

Cinching the belt on the coat would give me more of a peplum effect but then I might not be able to breathe - so I am not sure that would be a good idea. The jacket could also do with being a bit shorter as it finishes at my widest part but I would be happy to wear it out - but to be honest I would be happy to wear anything other than jeans at the moment, within reason (see below). 

I also took it to be a good sign that our neighbour didn't laugh when he saw me but then again I think that he was more interested in the Amazon package that I was delivering to him at the time.

I also spotted this outfit in the Sunday Times Style section.  Irrespective of how good or bad you think the above outfit is, I promise not to interpret this outfit for you in any way, shape, or form - pregnant or otherwise.

I'm not knocking Tory Spelling for wearing this - on the contrary, she's one brave lady. Whether pregnant or otherwise I would not be revealing myself in a number like this.  But to any lady who gets pregnant with her fourth child,  only five months after giving birth to her third child - well, she deserves respect.

Today's outfit: Zara skirt, Kew jacket, Jigsaw jumper, Carvela shoes

On the Run - Nearly, but I just couldn't quite bring myself to do it...

It nearly happened but I bottled it at the last minute.  The plan was to wear a dress or skirt for our street party this afternoon but as the day went on and the sun retreated behind the clouds I, once again, wimped out and wore trousers. 

The plan was to wear red, white and blue but as I don't have any red trousers, I opted for my White Stuff pink ones (note to self: don't have photos in pink clothes taken in front of pink front door), Hobbs NW3 shirt and as a nod to the "golden" part of the celebrations, I wore gold wedges. As you can see, it was all accessorised with a Union Jack.

This was our son's contribution to the street party - a chocolate cake which he always makes all by himself, although I am always under strict instructions to get the exact ingredients that he wants for the topping. This time it was Maltesers. I must admit responsibility for the awesomely awful Union Jack!

So, on to the Union Jack scarf competiton winner! Pat Shergold is the lucky winner and once I have received confirmation from her that she is happy for me to share her entry with you, I will do so. Thank you so much to everyone who entered - it's so lovely to hear from you all and I am only sorry that you couldn't all win.

So, on to some exciting news about Style It Light, a new fashion blog that has been set up with Look Magazine, Marie Claire and InStyle. Along with the guest bloggers from Marie Claire, Look and InStyle, I have been asked to contribute some articles each week.  Apparently I was shortlisted by the Marie Claire team from the blogger awards and invited to get involved.  It's both an exciting and slightly nerve wracking opportunity and I wanted to  thank everyone who voted for me in the Marie Claire fashion blog of the year awards earlier this year, as without you this opportunity wouldn't have come my way. To be honest I am not sure exactly what it entails but I will be sure to keep you posted!

So, now that the jubilee celebrations are well and truly over it's life back to normal. I think we all need to make plans for some further celebrations - I don't know what the reasons for them may be but as far as I am concerned, any excuse will do nicely!

On the Run - Three disasterous outfits in one day - impressive huh?!

You know how the saying goes when it comes to love - "it's better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all."  Well when it comes to clothes I reckon that it's "better to have tried and failed than never to have tried at all."

Having had enough of jeans/trousers/chinos and with it not being warm enough for skirts or dresses with bare legs, coupled with a refusal on my part to wear thick tights with anything, I thought that I would style my pleated palazzos with a denim shirt for a day time look. I have tried this successfully in the past with a lacy navy skirt from Mango but with the palazzos....

Both my son and I decided that it was a bad move - but here's the photo anyway.  Don't say I don't keep it real!

Having abandoned the palazzos in favour of trousers after all, I decided to add my huge lemon scarf from Zara.  There was a method to my madness believe me! I bought my scarf whilst shopping with a friend in Leeds one particularly cold weekend in May, on the basis that if we bought something wintery, the sun might come out.  So with that in mind I wore it today.  I am also fed up with wearing jackets and coats so thought that it would add some warmth - which it did but again it didn't really work for me as it was just a bit too bulky - outfit number 2 disaster!

For outfit number three I just took the scarf off and this too didn't work but the outfit illustrates a really good point, which is this...lighter patches on clothes act as highlighters and draw the eye in. In this case, the lighter patch is over my stomach with the result, I think, that it looks more rounded (unless I am just kidding myself, which is perfectly possible!) 

The same is true of the lighter patches on jeans, which are normally strategically placed over one's thighs or one's bottom. Now, if you are lucky to have very skinny thighs or a bottom to which you are happy to draw attention, that's fine. If not, jeans with lighter patches probably aren't for you so it's better to look for an all over, even, dark wash.

My last outfit of the day was probably my most successful but unfortunately I don't have a photo of it.  Shortly afterwards the sun came out (see, the lemon scarf did serve its purpose) and I threw on my old tracksuit bottoms, some green wellies and spent a few pleasant hours in the garden cutting down brambles, pulling up weeds and generally hoiking stuff out of the ground that shouldn't be there.  Very satisfying indeed!

Tomorrow I have some exciting news about a new project I will be working on with Marie Claire, Look and InStyle Magazine (unless they see this post and decide that it's not such a good idea after all) - and I will finally get around to announcing the winner of my Union Jack scarf competition.

Enjoy the sun - if you have some!  

On the Run - It's Gap and Zara all the way today!

Given that I spent most of the day at home with the children cooking and generally faffing about, I decided to bring you a photo of an outfit that I was wearing a couple of days ago instead.

You know, I can't actually remember what we were up to on this particular day but I do recall thinking that it would be nice to wear a white (Gap) shirt - I just feel that they lift an outfit to the next level.  I haven't worn this Zara blazer since last summer so it was nice to get it out again. It is made up of very fine white and pale blue stripes with a navy trim.

I was going to add my leopard print belt but I decided that a) it might be a bit of animal print overload, given that I was wearing my snake print wedges and b) I can't actually find it anyway.

So instead I went with a bright blue Topshop belt with an orange buckle.  My large canvas navy bag is also from Zara and the jeans from Gap.

The forecast would seem to suggest that the weather won't be getting better any time soon so over the next few days I might just have to dress as if it were sunny and bring you the photos despite the rain, otherwise autumn will be approaching and I still won't have worn anything vaguely summery other than a pair of Gap shorts. 

Failing that, the eldest two are off on school trips next week so it might be a good excuse to buzz off somewhere warm to take some photos in the sun - yes, I'm rather liking the sound of that - a bit drastic but appealing nonetheless.

On the Run - An outfit for another rainy day

I am in agony but it's completely my own fault. I decided to try a number of different exercise classes this week and after my circuits class on Tuesday well, that was me done in.  So my decision to go ahead with a body combat class this evening was probably less than wise but no doubt all will be revealed tomorrow.

Fortunately I was permitted to sit down for a couple of hours today whilst watching Snow White and the Huntsman.  It was a great film but if I am honest my attention was more on the Hunstsman than Snow White, or anyone else for that matter.  I shall say no more than that!

With the rain still beating down, and knowing that I would be in and out of the car alot I opted for my Gap skinnies, tan Jones boots and Khaki Kew short mac. It's a slightly different colour palette for me but I liked it and it fitted in with the weather for the day.

We had a brief visit to John Lewis yesterday, which is where I bought my Lola Rose scarf a few months ago.  These are the current prints that they have in John Lewis.  I really like their muted tones and soft touch.

For anyone who likes stripes but feels uncomfortable wearing them on their body, I thought that these wedge heeled espadrilles were great. They are part of the John Lewis weekend range.

I also love these Carvela shoes, which remind me of "Dorothy" shoes. I would imagine that they are part of Carvela's autumn range and with a cute block heel and a bit of sparkle I would wear them to pep up casual outfits, probably more so than with dressier outfits.

Assuming that I can move my arms tomorrow, I will blog - if nothing appears, you know why!

Meet Jo - A lady with a great weight loss story who, I think we would all agree, deserves to be so very proud of herself

A while ago I was contacted by Jo who told me her story about how she had put on weight and then how she had lost it again.  Jo was happy for me to share her story, which I found incredibly inspiring. Her 18 month commitment to reach her target weight showed great resolve. This is what Jo wrote:

"Hi my name is Jo and I am a 42 year old mother of two boys. I have lost 4 stone and have gone from a size 20 to a size 12. [This is a photo of Jo prior to losing the 4 stone]

I first had an issue with my weight after my last pregnancy. I had suffered so badly with post natal depression after a horrific birth and my marriage breaking up because of it all that I just used food for comfort, I was getting bigger and bigger but because I dressed well and love fashion I could get away with still looking nice, so people said! 

Crunch time for me was when I had to be measured for my new workwear and I needed a size 20! I was so shocked and then to top it all some American relatives had come over and they speak as they see and told me how much weight I had put on!!!... However this is what I needed and I decided to get on and get the weight off. 

I did weight watchers at home and got myself a fitness DVD and did this everyday. To start with I was so worn out and my thighs were so big rubbing together I could hardly move but as the time went on it got easier. I would say it took 18 months to get to the weight I wanted to be but it was a bit too thin and people would say I looked ill!! (you can't win)!!! But it was true so I have put a bit on and feel happier and it's also a weight I can stick to. If you try to be too thin it's so hard to maintain. [Jo after having lost 4 stones]

I love fashion and clothes and not only have I done this so I can now wear skinny jeans but for my health too...love Jo xx"

For anyone on the same journey as Jo, I am sure that she would be only too happy to answer your queries and provide you with the motivation to keep going, however tough the road ahead may look.  

On the Run - It must be the effects of the Jubilee : Vintage Fashion - as stylish and relevant as the day it was made.

The Jubilee has made me very nostalgic for fashions of times gone by. All of those images of the Queen looking so stylish - different colours and styles all beautifully accessorised with wonderful hats, jewellery and bags. Even as recently as this weekend, she was still miles ahead of anyone else in the style stakes and if anything, the outfits she has worn in recent years have been more stunning than ever.

I was flicking through my favourite Vintage Fashion book earlier when I saw this look, which I haven't yet tried. What do you reckon? This number was created by Japanese designer Kansai Yamamoto in 1971 and I think that we could definitely call it a statement outfit.

The coat below was designed by Osssie Clark and Celia Birtwell in 1971.  I love this design. Do you remember the collaboration that Celia Birtwell did with Topshop several years ago? I bought a lovely dress with a very similar print which I adored. The trouble was that the quality wasn't great so it had to go.

This is a beautiful bell shaped Rose print 1950's coat by Nina Ricci.  The Peter Pan collar and soft gathers from the shoulderline made it perfect over over full skirted shirt dresses, although today I think that we would be more likely to see it over skinny jeans.

Finally, this outfit of a floral halterneck top and and striped skirt was designed by Texan Tom Brigance in 1952.  His ethos was to make clothes "appropriate" for the American woman's mode of living.

What I love about these outfits is that, possibly other than the first one, all of them could be worn today and they would look as fresh and stylish as they did all of those decades ago. Which just goes to prove that it's not all about the latest trends, fads and disposable fashion. Perhaps we should all have a route around in the wardrobes of our Mums, Grandmas or Aunties and see what we can find. 

Do any of the above outfits bring back memories for you and what did you think of the Queen's outfits this weekend?

On the Run - A rainy day can't dampen our spirits - but I think that this Noa Noa coat would be a good additon to my Wardrobe right now!

There's being an eternal optomist (no, that weather forecast can't be right, the temp can't possibly drop by 10 degrees from one weekend to the next) and then there's just being plain stupid.  When it came to packing for our weekend away I fell into the latter category.

I have been packing for family holidays away in the UK for the past 13 years and still I get it wrong! I nearly didn't bring you a photo today, given that there is nothing much of interest to show but new people are always dropping by the blog and they may just spot something that they like.  And as I always maintain, Style Guile is a bit of a warts and all blog! Not that there's anything wrong with today's outfit - at least I am warm and comfortable.

Given the cold and rain today, jeans were the obvious choice, together with warm socks and converse to start off with but as it warmed up slightly, I cast the socks aside and rolled up the jeans slightly. 

You will notice that the jumper is the same one that I was wearing yesterday.  Underneath it I have layered a vest, a long sleeved white Fat Face top and my new White Stuff Shelley top at £39.95, which you can see here I liked that the collar of the top added something to the jumper and it was good to test out its versatility by layering it under something else.

Today I wore my three bracelets that I had brought with me - my new Reiss one, my green one from La La Rocks (def worth taking a look at their site as their products are lovely and now stocked by Harvey Nichols) and my Links one, which I bought with some money from my Grandma. I have one charm for each child and one for my husband.

Whilst in Cirencester yesterday I had a quick walk around Noa Noa. I love little towns with their independent boutiques and less mainstream stores.

I spotted this Noa Noa Cornel coat in Cloudburst which you can see  here  - it is definitely the sort of thing that I should have packed - this holiday and probably over the last 13 years!

For those of you who wondered where we were staying, we are at Watermark in the Cotswolds - not too far from home distance wise but it feels like a million miles away!  Some friends have a place nearby so we dropped into see them and joined in their jubilee party which in my case, consisted of two very strong Pimms and some chocolate biscuit cake. Result.  I hope that you are having a great jubilee weekend and don't forget to enter the competition for the Union Jack Scarf Envy scarf here - the fact that it is made of wool is decidedly appealing right now!

On the Run - On hols in White Stuff, Gap, Jigsaw and Carvela

We are on our hols and it's great! There are lots of activities for the children and we are working hard on wearing them out - trouble is we are getting whacked in the process.

There are lots of things that Mums like here (nice cushions, candles, lots of light, open living which is totally uncluttered - or it was before we arrived - neutral colour scheme, a huge utility room and decking which is perfect for mag reading).  There are also lots of things that boys like - big TVs, power showers and lots of gadgets.  The eldest are just relieved that exams are over so for now, it's fairly harmonious. Famous last words.

Packing was done fairly hurriedly because I got distracted from the task by watching the jubilee celebrations at school - which were fantastic.  By the time I had packed all those things that it's easy to forget - swimming goggles, youngest's water bottle for bed time, sun cream, sun hat, warm coats, wetsuits etc there wasn't much time left for clothes packing. I always leave my clothes to last so having done everyone else's in went 3 pairs of chinos, 3 jumpers, 3 long sleeved and 3 summer tops, a maxi dress, 3 pairs of shoes and a couple of scarves and that was it for me.

Today I am wearing new White Stuff trousers in sweet pea, Gap jumper with striped Jigsaw top underneath and Carvela wedges. The heel on the shoes is a good height for me - not to low and not too high. I like the little kick at the bottom of the trousers - a good hip balancer!

We started off the day at a swimming pool complete with slides etc.  You know the kind of place - one that the kids love but which you wouldn't choose to go to if you didn't have them. My husband was sure that there was something wrong with the clock as the hands didn't seem to move, which was odd really as the children's perception was the complete opposite but then you know how it is - if they're happy, you're happy.

On the Run - An outfit for a style event and a re-worded National Anthem

I've gone and done something daft and booked us a last minute trip away, leaving me with about 2.5 minutes to pack, shop and generally tidy up, which is a shame because I am working tomorrow.

Because I am short of time I will keep it brief. I wore this to an event that I was running tonight at DLA Piper, a firm of solicitors in Birmingham.  As the weather turned a bit chilly and wet I had to abandon my dress plans in favour of trousers. 

Our youngest is very excited about her party at school tomorrow - so excited about the new dress that she has for the event that she can't sleep.  Can't imagine where she might get that trait from.  She has also changed the words to the National Anthem,  Instead of :

"Long may she reign" we now have;
"Long may she rainbow" - which I guess is quite cheery really.

Right, I had better scoot and get myself sorted.  I hope that your plans for the long weekend are coming together nicely. 

Outfit: Gap trousers, Zara jacket, LK Bennett shoes, sparkly top Topshop, necklace Jigsaw