Mum on the Run - Party Party Party!

As many of you will know, we had big birthday celebrations this weekend which took the form of a 70th birthday party for my Mum. I can tell you, there's no better motivation for getting the house tidy than the thought of having lots of friends and family around Even the front step got a coat (or three) of paint!

So, in a departure from my usual posts, I thought that I would do a non-fashion post. Hope that you like it!

Our son and I made several batches of these the night before the party in preparation for afternoon tea the following day.  Freddie rolled them out, cut them out and gave them the egg wash. A greater fan of the Great British Bake-off you will not find! Wonder what Paul and Mary would say?!

This photograph was taken early in the morning of the day of the party. The bunting was borrowed from a friend and here you can see the freshly painted step!

And the tasteful (!) 70th decorations. They were limited but you have to have some, don't you?!

And just a few more!

Our youngest laid one of the tables for afternoon tea. She even chose Grandma's special mug and put the napkins and flowers out too. On the day, we used three or four beautiful table cloths that my Grandma had hand embroidered probably over 50 years ago now. We also used golden syrup tins for flowers, which we have collected over many years of baking. Note the owl cushion - where fashion goes interiors follow - except we had the cushion first!

Mum's birthday cake, as made by Caroline of Caroline's Cake Company with her beloved cat, Mia, on the top and beautiful handmade flowers. It tasted divine too.

I made this arrangement for Mum - a huge glass filled with things that remind us of her: jelly babies, liquorice allsorts, rubber gloves, hairspray, Walkers crisps, rollers, tea bags, gardening things and the all important blue eye shadow! Do you know how difficult it is to get a blue eye shadow in just the right shade of blue?!

Our eldest popped up to arrange the macaroons and pastries. Does anyone else remember Julie Walters as Mrs Overall and her macaroons on Acorn Antiques? It used to make us all laugh - and did on the day!

I think that Mum had a great time. Being surrounded by all my friends husband's seem to put a spring in her step too (as well as being surrounded by her family and friends!)

I also wanted to say thanks to Laura and Flo from the White Company for sending me this lovely box - which had something lovely in it which I will wear, and write about, when the weather is a little colder.

It arrived as I was walking through the downstairs of the house with a towel wrapped round me, having had a shower. The doorbell rang and I saw it was the postman with a very interesting looking parcel. Opening the door wasn't an option, so I called through the door to the postman and asked him whether I needed to sign for it. He must be used to this type of situation and just said, "No, it's fine, shall I just leave it on the mat?" Yes thank you Mr Postman, that sounded like a very good plan for all concerned.

Style Guile Smile - I love this jumper! (And it's cheaper than the shoes that I loved earlier in the week)!

Having had my hair cut yesterday, rather than the colour being of the salt and pepper persuasion, it is almost entirely salt, which is why I am sitting on the toilet lid in our bathroom writing this post whilst I am colouring it.

I have never really been one for having my hair coloured at the hairdressers. I have always been so annoyed at the expense, the time that it takes and the fact that I have come out looking like Paul McCartney on a bad day, that I now do it at home.  It costs me one tenth of the price, I can use my time wisely and there comes a point about half way through the life of the colour when it has golden streaks and looks as if it cost me a lot more than the £4 odd that I spent on it. I like that bit. Shame that it doesn't last for long.

Today's post is just a quickie as we have a busy weekend with our son's 11+ (well, he has. I am sure that I won't be contributing anything meaningful to the experience - apart from my support) and also my Mum's 70th birthday celebrations, which we are holding here.

So, I wanted to share with you this little gem that I found in the trend section at H&M yesterday. For what it's worth, the "trend" part is relevant because trend isn't stocked in all branches but it is worth finding out if your local branch sells it, as it has some great pieces.

Naturally, being the magpie that I am, the sparkly cuffs caught my eye. I was in need of a plain navy jumper and I liked the length of this one and the fact that it is slightly longer at the back. It is also 100% wool.

If I had seen it stocked in a more expensive store, I might have thought of buying a wool jumper elsewhere and adding the embellishment myself - ie doing a Gok - but given its £34.99 price tag I probably wouldn't save anything.

See, aren't these cuffs pretty? And they will be on display all of the time so at least the detail will be seen.

Again, it should be a really versatile piece and I think that it would look lovely with a white shirt underneath. It will go with anything from jeans, coloured or otherwise, to printed trousers and also with wide legged trousers and heels for an evening out. I know that I shouldn't think it, let alone say it, but it could even be the perfect Christmas Day jumper.

For anyone who would like to make further investigations, I have included a photo of the tag below. Note that the fawn tag denotes "trend"!

By the way, if you don't see me appearing on here for a few days it's because I am looking like Paul McCartney on a worse than bad day! Have a lovely weekend.

Mum on the Run - One mac two different ways....

I know that it looks like it but when this photograph was taken yesterday morning, I wasn't really looking to the skies, thanking the Lord that the day had come for the children to go back to school. Honestly!

I don't know about anyone else but by lunchtime (not before you note!) I really missed them. I even detoured on the way home from Homebase via our eldest's school to see if I could catch a glimpse of her.

Anyway, given it was the first day of the new term, I thought that I would give my new trench coat an outing.  I had been on the look out for a new one for ages as my Zara one was a bit shabby and I always felt a little self-conscious in it. I had looked at one in the sale in Aubin and Wills earlier in the summer, checked out the Burberry ones at Bicester and also the new season Hobbs and LK Bennett ones but nothing really grabbed me.

I then went into All Saints and found this one in the sale, reduced from £295 to £147.50. What I liked about it was the finish on it. The colour is described as Oyster and it has a slight metallic finish/sheen to it, which is better against my skin tone than a flat finish - especially a biscuit flat finish which makes me look either anaemic or slightly jaundiced. Lovely.

For this first outfit, I was wearing it with a Jigsaw skirt, Hobbs top and necklace, Topshop leopard belt, Zara shoes and Orla Kiely bag.

Number 3 (she who told our neighbours that I was out at the weekend getting drunk and that I had left her in the car on her own whilst I went to Wagamamas for lunch) was in charge of the camera today and refused to take a photo until I said "sausages" - hence the ridiculous grin.

Today I wore it with GAP cords in blue (these are the same style as the berry ones I had on on Saturday. With 30% off at the moment they come in at less than £30), Dune brogues, Ted Baker floral top, same bag!

Here you can get a better idea of the finish on the coat.

and also here too.

I can't find the trench on-line but should anyone be interested in the details, here they are on the tag. Just so that you know, they do come up quite big.

I also had a quick look in Mango today whilst in town and the suede jacket which I showed yesterday is lovely. Very heavy and nicely finished. Next didn't have the heeled loafers in and the best alternative I could find to the Russell & Bromely ones were these Andover high heeled penny loafers in Dune, which cost £75. They still aren't quite there for me but are probably the closest to be had for now.

Hope that you have all had a good day. Do let me know if you find any new season fab pieces!

Style Guile Smile - A suede Mango biker jacket in six colours and an alternative to the Russell & Bromley leopard heeled loafer of yesterday

I was going to post an outfit today...but that can wait until tomorrow because I wanted to show you this little beauty  - the Mango suede biker jacket which comes in 6 colours and costs £99.99.

As you know, I am a bit of  fan of a biker jacket. I love the versatility of them - the way that they can make a classic evening dress more edgy, they way they can be put with biker boots and layered with skinny jeans and a longer top underneath, they way that they sit so well with a lace pencil skirt. I could go on...

I have a theory behind building the perfect Wardrobe, which goes something like this: A good Wardrobe can be built in the shape of a pyramid, with three sections layered on top of one another.

On the bottom section are the basics: good jeans, black and navy trousers, white shirt, mac, lbd, day time and evening skirts, plus basic knits. These are the foundations if you like - and for some, a biker in a neutral colour, such as navy, black or brown, may fall into this section.
 

 

On the next level are some pieces to make your Wardrobe a little more interesting and up to date: coloured or skinny jeans or cords, day time sparkles, a denim shirt, stripes, lace and this could be the place for a biker jacket in perhaps a slightly more "adventurous colour" - perhaps to be added in when you already have one which goes with everything already - or just because you fancy it!

On the top layer are the on trend pieces for the season. There will generally be fewer of them and they will tap into the trends that you like - whether in terms of colour/style/shape/print and so on. Over time, some may work their way into one of the lower two tiers whilst others may have a shorter life span. This neon blue jacket, and this red jacket, would fall into this top category. They won't go with everything but they will make a real statement.

 

 

None of the above is set in stone - and some may head straight for the red jacket without having any other coat at all - just because they fancy it - and I totally get that too! But for longevity and to ensure that you have something that works with everything and for every occasion, the pyramid idea is a good starting place.

Following on from yesterday's post (and under orders from my friend to "work my magic") I have done a good deal of hunting for an alternative to the Russell & Bromley leopard heeled loafer. I haven't had a great amount of success so far but these are the nearest to anything which may vaguely work in the same way.

These are the Next leopard effect panel heeled loafer At £30 they are one tenth of the cost of the Russell & Bromley ones.  Whilst definitely less of a statement, the reviews are good so at the very least, they may be worth investigating. But I know only too well how it is when you fall in love with the real thing...

Style Guile Smile - I just love these shoes!

 

 

I have been coveting these shoes from Russell & Bromley since I first saw pictures of them a few months ago now. The trouble is that Russell & Bromely are having a new website built and it's not ready yet - so the images aren't that clear.

So, why do I like them? Because the heel on them is high, but not too high, and nor is it too thin.  A heeled loafer is more versatile than a court when it comes to wearing them with trousers and skinnies - and you can't go wrong with a bit of leopard print. 

The only deal breaker for me is the price. At £295 they are too expensive - so they can be added to the list of items for which I need to find less expensive alternative. I love that bit - the challenge. It's always so satisfying when you find them!

I was going to bring you a post today about my visit to the Boden pop up store in the Bullring.  I don't know about you, but for me a "pop up" store conjures up images of pop up Barbie tents.  However I can assure you that it isn't in the least bit pink and nor is constructed out of plastic rods and nylon. No, it looks very much like a "proper" shop to me.

So, the post would have been longer but for the fact that I have been so busy on amazingly exciting opportunities that have come my way, which have left me short of time.

Or would it be more accurate to say that I am short of time because I have spectacularly failed, even at this late hour, to label all of the children's uniform, or fill in forms for various activities and school trips (even the forms that should have been completed before term ended.) But, I am proud of my pump cupboard.  I reckon that we have a pair in every size from a small 8 to a large 4 - including half sizes. Now that's a shoe collection of which to be proud!

An Event in support of Look Good Feel Better - A charity which helps women combat the physical side effects of their cancer treatment

When I received a press release from Harvey Nichols Birmingham today about its Theatre of Beauty event, I thought that I would share it with you all.

It's a great event, in support of a fantastic charity, which helps women combat the physical side effects of their cancer treatment.

Read on for details....Hope to see some of you there!

HARVEY NICHOLS 

THEATRE OF BEAUTY

 
 

 

Harvey Nichols Birmingham has joined forces with a leading UK cancer charity to stage its first fundraising Theatre of Beauty later this year.

The luxury Mailbox store will host the event on Wednesday November 14, with 100% of ticket proceeds being donated to Look Good...Feel Better, the beauty industry’s charity that helps women combat the visible side-effects of their cancer treatment. Available in more than 60 hospitals in the UK – including Birmingham’s City and Queen Elizabeth Hospitals – the LGFB Programme provides uplifting skincare and make-up workshops to increase self confidence and self esteem.

 

The Theatre of Beauty will run from 6pm-9pm and guests can enjoy a host of beauty demonstrations, consultations and mini make-overs from leading cosmetic and skincare brands. There will also be competitions to win exclusive gifts and experiences as well as live Q&A sessions with beauty experts on stage.

Tickets cost £15 to include drinks, canapés and a goody bag. There will also be a limited number of VIP tickets available, at £25, which includes a 15-minute one-to-one with a Beauty Editor from one of the UK’s leading glossy women’s magazines or national newspapers. Inside a specially created ‘Beauty Editors’ lounge, you will receive expert advice on the hottest new products, trends and beauty tips, plus a specially-created VIP goody bag filled with skincare and make-up treats.

Tickets are available on line at www.harveynichols.com or can be purchased in store.

 

 

Mum on the Run - An afternoon at Harvey Nichols. What more could a girl want?

Yesterday afternoon I was lucky enough to spend a very pleasant few hours at a bloggers' event, which was held at Harvey Nichols in Birmingham.

 

We were treated to some dishes from their new menu, plied with champagne and cupcakes, a fashion show and a beauty treatment. Can there be a better way to spend a Saturday afternoon?  In all honesty I felt guilty being away from the children but then I have spent the whole summer with them - so they are probably sick of me anyway!

 

 

A photographer was there to take pictures during the event and he was good enough to take these pictures for me on my camera - though I shall be bringing you some of his professional shots later in the week.

In all honesty, I wasn't quite sure what to wear and having done the gymnastics run and other jobs, I didn't have much time to decide. As it was a lunchtime event, it didn't require anything too dressy and nor did it require anything to summery - given that we were looking at the A/W trends. 

So, I decided to go for an A/W theme but without any black - don't ask me why!  The berry cords from GAP had their first outing and I teamed them with a kingfisher blue silk H&M shirt, berry coloured NW3 shoes, grey studded Topshop belt and grey Mulberry bag.

I was comfortable, the temperature was right and I didn't feel too underdressed or overdressed, so all was well. I had a lovely afternoon chatting with other bloggers from the Midlands who all had lots of blogging hints and tips.

When I saw these Sophie Hulme bags I virtually pounced on them. I love Sophie Hulme and her bags are fabulous - they are just so elegantly simple and chic. The picture below is of Sophie's leather tote bag (£580) which also comes in black (£550).

This is Sophie's leather satchel, (£255) which also comes in yellow and blue.

We also had a sneak preview (and taste) of some of Harvey Nichols' Christmas gifts. This gift, which is exclusive to HN caught my eye. Shaped like something from Apple...

....it contains four bars of delicious chocolate. Sorry, I forgot to get an idea of the price - too busy eating the chocolate!

So, as to the comment from the photographer on Friday about my double chin.  Having taken some shots, he came up to me with a bemused look on his face and showed me the picture on his camera. He then said to me: "It looks to me as though you have a double chin on this shot - is that right and is there anything you can do about it?"

My thoughts were: "Errr, yes, it is a double chin and short of having some incisions somewhere, no, there isn't anything that I can do about it."

In fact it was much worse than that as a double chin is made up of excess fat, which can be lost. What I have is a little slackening going on and no amount of creams, lotions and potions are going to make a difference to that - that's gravity and other things for you. And frankly, I don't mind a bit!

Style Guile Smile - How to win a fabulous dress from The Fold for yourself and a friend plus styling from me, the Online Stylist and Feather & Frills

Today I wanted to share with you details of a fabulous competition which is being run by The Fold. I was so excited when an email dropped into my in box, asking me if I would like to be a part of this really exciting competition and event - and without hesitation I said yes!

The winner, along with a friend, will attend an evening event at the Push PR showroom in London.  Both the winner and her guest will receive a one of the Fold's beautiful dresses, a hair and make-up session and I will be there along with Amanda Start, the Online Stylist, and Victoria, from Feathers & Frills, styling the new Fold collection.

For those who are unfamiliar with The Fold, it was founded in January 2011 by Cheryl and Polly, two high flying women who met whilst doing their MBAs at London Business School. Disillusioned with the lack of fabulous outfits to wear to work, they created The Fold, a contemporary label which embraces the needs of the high flying modern woman.

Their dresses are beautiful - simple, chic and elegant and here are a few of my favourites:

From top to bottom:

 

The Rockefeller in royal blue

The Camelot in winter white

Bond Street dress in navy leather

So, how to enter? Just like the Fold's Facebook page and post your fail safe fabulous tip. I think that Cherly and Polly would also quite like it if you could follow them on Twitter @TheFoldLondon

The event is being held on Thursday 13th September so good luck and I really look forward to meeting you there!

Mum on the Run - in a sparkly knit, utility trousers and wedge desert boots

I know! Impressively scruffy eh? By the time the rain stopped it was nearly the end of the day.

 

 

It was really chilly here this morning, hence the layers of shirt and jumper. I haven't worn my GAP utility trousers for ages, so thought that I would dig them out - but I will be burying them again soon as I have other black trousers that I prefer.

 

Days like today are quite good for trying out things to see whether you still like them - all in the comfort of your own home and without anyone seeing you - until you go and do something daft like post them on a blog for the world to see.

 

I do like wedge desert boots with skinny jeans/trousers though. I can't bring myself to wear "proper" boots yet but it was too cold for wedge sandals or any other kind of summer heels, so they fitted the bill.

 

I have a hectic two days coming up.  Tomorrow I am on a mammoth shop, choosing outfits for a photo shoot, with the shoot taking place all day on Friday.  So if I don't get a chance to blog, it's because I am buried under an avalanche of clothes!

 

Today's outfit: Warehouse jumper, GAP trousers and shirt, Jigsaw necklace, New Look boots.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Style Guile Finds - Something to keep you warm as September approaches

I must admit that I had a little panic yesterday.  When I finally braved the outdoors, somewhere in the middle of the afternoon, it was cold - really cold - which made me think that the summer had gone for good.

Now as you all know, I hate being cold. It makes me really miserable.  So, I wondered whether it was time to reach for the jumpers - and that's where my second (mini) panic came in.  You see, I can't bring myself to even take a look at my jumpers because I keep finding moths in the house - and I fear that they will have devoured my knitwear.

So, my plan is to buy a couple of jumpers, both to deal with the drop in temperature - although it's been boiling today so perhaps I am a little premature in my fear - and also because it will soften the blow if my others have been scoffed by the moths.

"Why don't you just take a look at them now?" I hear you ask. Well, in all honesty I don't have that many pieces of knitwear that I truly love so I could do with adding one or two new bits - and anyway, I'm a wimp.

I'm not looking for anything run of the mill - I have your usual round neck, v-neck and cropped jumpers and cardis. I also have a couple of sparkly pieces, another one with spots on and several striped jumpers too.

There are lots of weird and whacky jumpers out there for the season. Novelty jumpers, for want of a better phrase, have had a bit of a revival. But I think I am the wrong side of 30 to go around with batman shouting "kerpow" splattered across my chest. 

Or indeed have a pair of eyes staring out from it, as per this Markus Lupfer sequined wool jumper £280

Animals are also big - owls in particular thanks to Burberry but also foxes, dogs and perhaps lions too, if you live in Clacton.

Colour blocking will be a big trend for the season and I love this Gap boat neck sweater £29.95 which also comes in bright turquoise with grey, and yellow with grey. It really packs a punch on the colour stakes and will look great with those dark bottoms we all love to wear - or even some bright floral ones for those feeling brave.

Animals are also big - owls in particular thanks to Burberry but also foxes, dogs and perhaps lions too, if you live in Clacton. And unlike seasons gone by, jumpers aren't just going to be part of an outfit, they will be the centre piece of the outfit.

The Burberry owl cashmere sweater £795 has already sold out at Net a Porter - so I am showing you the t-shirt - but the jumper isn't hugely different in design. Owls are going to be huge this season and Next has many pieces which are subject to the owl influence!

So, here are a couple of pieces that I think walk that fine line between run of the mill and screaming "Look at me, I'm wearing a jumper of the season." (You wait - bet I will be sporting an owl in a few months - just not a burberry one!)

First off the white company rib hem sweater £85.  The White Company has great knitwear and there's always an offer to be had, so what may appear quite expensive at first glance can sometimes become more reasonable. I love this style jumper with skinny jeans, khakis or cords together with chunky boots and a long pendant for an off duty chic look.

This White company navy poncho £85 is a great way of adding interest to the silhouette of your outfit without adding too much bulk. I like the fact that it is different from the usual jumper/cardi styles and because this one isn't too voluminous, or brown, or crocheted, it doesn't have those negative 1970's associations, which so many ponchos have!

It's worth taking a closer look at this Boden skye jumper £69.  It is a relaxed fit, comes in different colours and is slightly lower at the back than the front - great for filling that breezy gap when bending over.  The reviews of it are really good too.

  

I love this Mango buttons flecked jumper £34.99, especially with the denim shirt styled underneath it.  It is also longer at the back and the buttons are down the back, which again makes it a little more interesting. The fleck in it makes it really versatile and I love it as styled on the Mango website, with wide cords and heels with the sleeves rolled up. Again, a laid back but stylish look.

 

 

 

A post on jumpers wouldn't be complete without a sequinned jumper and surprisingly, there are a lot around already.  Usually they appear nearer to Christmas but I have noticed a lot in the stores already.  This Mango sequin wool jumper £44.99 also comes in grey and would be great as an evening update to jeans.

 

 

And if you do decide to embrace the whole jumper trend head on, what better place to look than Topshop? Over the years I have had some great knits from Topshop and this year they have paisley, Union Jacks, drums, skulls, army print, as well  as pretty lace and pastel coloured jumpers. For anyone feeling romantic, how about this Topshop hearts jumper £36? It can soon be toughened up with leather, spikes and denim!

 

 

 

 

And finally, you know I mentioned an alternative to the Burberry owl jumper - well here she is, the French Connection lady owl jumper £67 - what's not to love?!

On the Run - Running away from away from the 11+ books in brogues

You know me - I love a good brogue, and a navy top, and a pair of jeans and oh look, here they are all  together!

 

I haven't worn this navy Cos top for a while but it has a little Peter Pan collar on it which is really cute.

 

Yesterday our son and I were hitting the books in preparation for his 11 plus exam in a couple of weeks. I though it only fair that I sat with him whilst he was doing the questions and I wanted to feel a bit "put together". For some reason - brogues do that for me. When I wear them I mean business!  

 

I think he learnt a lot - his vocabulary has certainly been broadened - mainly as a result of choice words and phrases on my part. 

 

The maths, english and verbal reasoning I get - that all makes sense and is useful in every day life. The non-verbal reasoning - what a total and utter waste of time. I would rather clean the windows than work out whether a whole load of shapes have been roated through 45 or 90 degrees in a clockwise or anti-clockwise direction whilst shaded in a different way from the shapes next to them. We did have some laughs though!

This photo was taken on a trip to the newsagents as part of one of our "breaks". Having sat on a bench in the sun for a few minutes, I was encouraged by our son to return to the books - and I somewhat reluctantly followed. I love a bit of reverse psychology!

Here are a closer shot of the bag and cuff that I wore - the bag is the Orla Kiely (Bicester) one that I had from my husband for my birthday and the cuff is Hobbs NW3.

I can feel a whole brogue post coming on but thought that I had better give the shoes a rest for a while as I have been talking about them quite a lot recently!

 

Outfit: Gap high rise skinny jeans, Cos top, Dune cream brogues, bag and cuff as listed.