Growing old (dis)gracefully - a blog and vlog on how to style yourself in your 40's and beyond....

Today's vlog is all about Fashion for the Over 40's. There are a lot of "rules", myths and views about what we should, or shouldn't do, once we reach 40, so I've just spent five minutes or so talking about what I've learnt during my six years as a stylist (and my 5 years as an Over 40!)

I'm hoping to follow the vlog with a series of "How to Wear..." vlogs, the first one of which is a work in progress at the moment, so do keep your eyes peeled. If you would like to subscribe to my YouTube channel you can do so by pressing the "subscribe" button on this page which will mean that you will automatically get updated as and when a new vlog appears. And if you think that any of your friends or family would be interested in my musings, please feel free to share the vlogs. Equally if you have any feedback or if there is anything that you would like me to cover, please just drop me a line. I'm also hoping to do a series of "30 second styling tips" too - so we shall see where that takes us!

I've definitely come to the conclusion that as we get older we care slightly less what others think - subject to us feeling comfortable and confident, which is something that I cover in the vlog. A few years ago I would never have posted a picture like this. I would have been too scared that someone would say something horrible. Not so much anymore - I've figured that it always says more about the happiness, or otherwise, of the person leaving the comment than it does about anything else. And anyway I have to keep the 7 year old entertained or there will be a revolt.

On Instagram people seemed to like this jumper that I was wearing today. Despite the fact that it's a good few years old, it's still available at All Saints (£78). It comes in 6 shades, mostly varying shades of neutrals/greys/black but also in terracotta too. I suppose that you could say that whilst it's on the pricey side, it does have longevity. And if that's not good justification for buying something, I don't know what is!

A bit of back detail never goes amiss!

I  Hope that you have a lovely Sunday Evening. Any Downton fans out there? I'm banned from watching it with Mr SG and our eldest due to my quips at its expense. Oddly for one who spends his life taking the mick out of things, Mr SG does not find my quips funny. Can't imagine why. Beth x

Layering up against the cold in Boden, Oasis, Primark and All Saints

Oasis leather jacket, Primark fur gilet, Boden chunky jumper, Boden coated skinnies, All Saints bag, Whistles boots

You all know what a fan I am of layering. Lots of people like to layer because it means that they can take a layer off when they get too warm. Well that never happens to me but I think that several layers can make a look more interesting (and warmer) than one or two heavy layers. 

Here I'm wearing the toasty roll neck jumper from Boden (still available in the sale for £48) plus my cream Oasis leather jacket and a Primark gilet which cost me £14 about three years ago now. This All Saints bag was bought in an outlet store a couple of summers ago now and it just kind of pulled the black and cream look together - plus it's good for carrying a small child in.

I'm delighted to report that my shopping mojo is well and truly back. Recently I have been shopping for a style party that I'm doing next week, plus the most diverse range of styling projects that I've ever undertaken in one week. Hopefully I will get a chance to share some of my favourite buys with you towards the end of the week. 

Now, on a completely unrelated note, I think that it's important to let everyone know that Wagon Wheels are totally tasteless. I've just tried a bit of one and not only that but they are now tiny! Does anyone else remember when they were so huge that it took a week to eat one? I can't work out whether it's for economic reasons or health reasons that they've made them smaller but if I was so inclined that I need more, I would just eat two. Nanny state. Pah!

Meet my latest accessory, which also serve the purpose of the being able to see variety....

[Outfit: Whistles trousers, All Saints jumper, Adidas trainers, Cocinelle cuff, shirt from boutique]

I know that you wouldn't think it just by looking at it but this outfit actually took a while to pull together. First, I had to iron my shirt (not a pleasant activity for a Sunday morning).  Secondly, I had to stitch the cuff of my jumper which had come undone and if that wasn't enough....well it was actually so after that it was just a case of getting dressed. But the thing was that today I went to pick up my new (and first pair of) glasses so I wanted everything to be plain and safe. And you can't really get much plainer or safer than navy trousers, navy jumper, white shirt and white trainers can you?

My prescription isn't strong but I think that for the cinema and also for night time, or early morning, texting my glasses will make a difference. Mr SG is slightly freaked out about them. He thinks that it's rather like having a new wife. Interesting. I'm just wondering whether this new wife might possibly be in need of a whole new wardrobe???

ps sorry about the blog looking different. In getting my computer fixed, the settings have been mucked about with and I'm not sure how to re-set them. Everything is so tiny. Great timing on the glasses front really!

One dress, two different ways and both with blue shoes (although not suede ones in this case)....

This morning I attended a meeting at the offices of a local modelling agency. We were there to discuss the next event for Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter, which is being held in October. It's a great event, the aim of which is to showcase the work of the Jewellery Quarter to the rest of the City.  I love this particular event, not only for the fantastic people and the great atmosphere, but also because it means that I get to style models in lots of fab outfits whilst playing with diamonds and other beautiful jewellery at the same time.

Knowing that it was going to be a day of two halves in terms of activities, I wore the  Pia jersey dress from All Saints for the meeting. It's easy to wear, comfortable and can be dressed up or down. For this meeting some blue heeled Hobbs shoes dressed it up (the leather jacket is good for warmth on slightly colder mornings)...

...and for this afternoon's trip of  "back to school" jobs which included children's haircuts, stationery buying and a trip to the Post Office, blue converse dressed it down. Keeping with the blue theme I also wore a lightweight NW3 blazer which I wore a lot last year - less so this - but it was nice to re-visit an old favourite.

How are those back to school preparations going in your homes? I know that some children have already gone back, some are starting tomorrow and others start next week.  For anyone with children starting new schools, at whatever age, good luck!

Today's shoes - What I wore, what I saw and what I bought....

 

Today, shoes featured quite heavily in my day. I had two meetings at opposite ends of town so predictably I had a pair of trainers with me just in case but these M&S block heeled leopard print shoes are so comfortable that I didn't have to change - which is a rarity for me when walking a distance. And it's really odd but whenever I wear these shoes, people always ask me where I got them from. They are always shocked by the response!

Clearly I only have one dress. This is the same Pia dress that I featured only a couple of days ago but I was on the 'phone whilst trying to get dressed so I had to go for something easy/stretchy and which wouldn't end up in me doing myself an injury. It was then easy just to thrown on the shoes and jacket before heading out of the door.  I think that here I am wearing the dress slightly longer than at other times of the day but that's what I like about it - it can be worn longer or shorter and I've even been known to put it on upside down - but that was in error.

On the way back across town there were four shops that were directly in my path, so they each got the once over. Jigsaw was first and although I tried on a couple of dresses, there was nothing that I loved enough (or more importantly which loved me enough) to justify buying it. Then, having felt a little bad about my comment about White Stuff yesterday, that too got a visit, just in case it had the perfect summer dress - but it didn't. It did have plenty of skirts though...

Then it was the turn of Coast, where I looked lovingly at the Ariel shoe (Coast £65 down to £30) but I concluded that, much as I liked them. I really didn't need these shoes in my life. Although looking at them again maybe I was wrong about that. I don't know about you but I always feel that it is important to acknowledge when one is wrong about something and to try to do something to fix it....

And these are what I bought today - wait for it - the Jack Wills Castley flip flop (£14.50) - I know, hardly a purchase of designer shoe magnitude. I've had a pair of Cath Kidston flip flops for a couple of years now but they are looking a little tired and given that they haven't included any in their collection this year, I have had to look elsewhere. For some reason I like a print on the base of the flip flop and the top part is my perfect shade of pink.

So that's my round up of the shoes I wore, the shoes I saw and the shoes I bought - for today at least!

Tips for getting dressed in a hurry!

 

This was one of those outfits that was put together in a humungous rush. It was Saturday morning and I was due at M&S at 10am to work with them for the day. Thinking that I had lots of time to spare - after all 10am is not exactly an early start - I thought that I would do some household chores first, strip some beds, put the washing on and go for a run and then, before I knew it, it was time to go and I still wasn't ready. Anyone else know that feeling?!

In one sense it didn't really matter what I wore because I had to change when I arrived in store. However I did want to wear some flat shoes so that in between presentations I could lose the heels, hence the Clarks sandals

Heading for a tried and tested favourite is always a good plan in these type of situations so I wore my All Saints Pia dress BUT the vest that I had decided to wear (M&S had located me in a lovely part of the store but it was right next to the food hall, complete with millions of fridges belting out lots of cold air. It could only happen to me - and on one of the hottest days of the year) peeped through the slash neck of the dress - hence the huge Zara striped scarf to cover up a look that couldn't ever be passed off as anything other than bad planning. I think that the scarf and bright yellow Kate Spade bag just about rescued the situation.

The All Saints dress is no longer available but for something similar, the textured dress from Hush (£60) may be a good option. A dress like this is such a good back drop for so many other accent colours for bags and shoes, such as bright yellow, hot pink and turquoise and when it comes to scarves and statement necklaces, the world is your oyster. Just watch your vest straps!!!

Embracing the warmer weather, little by little....

OK, I'm going to come clean - I've been wearing pretty much the same outfit every day for two weeks, as it's that long since no.1 child started with a horrendous virus. The day that she went back to school, no. 2 child was struck down.  No. 3 has a nasty cold so she too could be off and no. 1 has also picked it up - so we're a pretty grubby infected household at the moment. You know that things are bad when you get the time to put all the aprons and running stuff on a hot wash, just to get them super clean. And when you get around to getting up the step ladder to clean out the top of your husband's wardrobe - well, that says it all!

 

Today's outfit was positively haute couture! Being slightly warmer, when I went to get the youngest from school, I wore my All Saint's trench plus an animal scarf which is graded in colour and which a lovely friend gave me for Christmas - both for the first time. I had been saving the silk scarf for a warmer day - and today was the day. Warmer weather allowed me to go sockless too. Despite everything, the warm sunshine made me really happy!

 

I thought that I would share with you this Mother's Day present from our eldest. As soon as she started to feel slightly better, she started to make these origami flowers, which took her hours and hours. On each piece of paper she wrote the same word over and over again before making it into a flower. A pressie that costs so little in terms of money but which is priceless. I know that it's a bit late in coming but I hope that everyone had a lovely Mother's Day - or just a lovely sunny Sunday.

 

 

 

 

Printed Zara scarf - taking a winter outfit into spring!

 

I'm not quite sure how it came about but I decided to mix camo print GAP trousers with several layers, a Boden jacket and then a bright Zara scarf. Because the print in the trousers is fairly subtle, and because the colours in the scarf (apart from the bright yellow) are the same as those in the trousers and the bag, it just about got itself under the radar of fashion crimes.

This was the first time that I had worn the new Zara scarf and I really like it - it's huge and a bit wafty and soft - so very spring like - and you can see how much brighter it makes the whole outfit.

Here's a closer look at the layering that went on - an essential part of my everyday life until the thermometer hits at least 20 degrees! First on was the long cobalt Jigsaw top, followed by a slightly shorter black Zara jumper, followed by an even shorter Boden jacket - a sort of stepped approach to layering - and it really doesn't matter that the jacket is the shortest of those steps!

Today I spent the day walking around the Touchwood shopping centre in Solihull, choosing outfits for a two day style event that I am running there next weekend. Please do come and say hello if you are in the area. For anyone who likes chatting about clothes it will be the perfect opportunity to do so, plus the PR Company have come up with a great idea on how it should all look, so it's quite hi-tec and interactive.  

Anyway, here's something to leave you with which I read in the 6 year olds R.E. book at parents' evening - it made me laugh:

"Jesus gave up his life for everyone. I wud give up costud (custard) for Amelie."

I'm not sure that it is quite the same level of sacrifice but I think that the intention is good.

How to pull together a bit of this and a bit of that to make a new outfit (plus the 25% discount code for Whistles)

Today dawned vaguely sunny so I decided to wear a dress - which I then wore as a skirt, which kind of defeated the object but never mind.  Anyway, because it's so versatile I wore my Pia jersey dress from All Saints (no longer available but the Marilla dress by All Saints (£88) is pretty close) with a striped GAP top, cobalt blue GAP jumper, Kausar cobalt blue bag (sadly no longer available), Whistles scarf and M&S leopard shoes.

With a very fitted bottom half, I wanted a looser and more relaxed look on the top half, so this jumper fitted the bill and the cobalt blue in the scarf and bag tied the outfit together - but hopefully not in a too matchy-matchy kind of way. I like it when a variety of random items comes together to make a new outfit - it's a bit like conjuring up a new recipe for dinner -sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't but I was happy enough with this ensemble.

Forgive me for bleating and tweeting about Whistles again but I just wanted to let you know that the Grazia offer has finally arrived and there's currently 25% off. If you're buying online, just quote the code WH25SS14. If you're buying in store, you will need the voucher from the magazine. If what you're after is showing as sold out, don't panic. Whistles has the most fabulous customer service department. Just email them at enquiries@whistles.co.uk with your query and they will let you know which store has the item you are after. You can then call that store and purchase over the telephone. A friend of mine has already used the service today with great success.

So far I've heard of people buying sweatshirts, tops and bags. What bargains (in the loosest sense of the word of course) have you bagged? I'm off to take a look now.....

Rugby matches and style. A contradiction in terms I wonder?!

Whether this outfit was a hit or miss was besides the point as its sole purpose was to keep me warm when I went to watch our son play rugby today. [I strongly recommend that you skip the next paragraph if you don't want to read my "Rugby Rant" - but better to do it here than to bore my friends - and at least you don't have to pretend to be interested!]

 

And as for this rugby business? Now I like a bit of competitiveness along with the rest of them but really? You bring your children up to share and play nicely but once they're on a rugby pitch, all bets are off. Your son has the ball and someone on the other team wants it? Well that's just fine - why don't you go right ahead and knock him to the floor and if you want to knee him in the face whilst he's lying there, that's just fine too.  And then at the end let's all shake hands and pretend what jolly good fun that was. And to continue with my rant.....snowball fights are banned on the grounds of Health and Safety, playing with conkers is banned on the grounds of Health and Safety but let's just let them kick the whatsit out of one another all in the name of sport. If that kind of behaviour occurred anywhere else it would be an assault, or a riot, or a breach of the peace. Rant over. I know I'm missing the point....

 

Anyway, as to the outfit - I wore Gap jeans, a Warehouse cable knit jumper, a French Connection scarf, a Primark fur gilet, the warmest overcoat that I own and which is from All Saints, M&S leather gloves and Cos (now very muddy) Chelsea boots, which our eldest held up this morning and said "I like these, they remind me of Harry Styles."  For once I didn't quite know what to say!

 

 

 

 

 

Some transitional pieces to see you through the next few months...

For the first time since the New Year, today I was back in the shops, shopping for an event which is on Saturday. There were some great sale pieces which I picked up, so I'll try and share those with you in day or so.

I've also taken a look online finding some new, and some sale, pieces that appealed. These are things that could be worn now and which will also go through into the spring - so nothing too dark (other than the black dress I have included!) and nothing too heavy - but rather things that can be integrated into a wardrobe pretty easily.

Still on the theme of sweatshirts which, for their warmth, I prefer to fine knit jumpers, there's this Floral jacquard sweatshirt from J Crew (£148). Quite often I will spot the things that I like and then file them away in my brain, waiting until I find a similar, but less expensive, alternative - so I'll let you know if that happens! Being a girl who has lots of navy in her wardrobe, something like this would slot in quite easily.

I love the vibrant colours on this Paisley silk T, also from J Crew (£98) which I filed in my brain only for a day or two before I came across...

...this alternative in Zara (£22.99). Granted the colours aren't as vibrant but neither are they as pale as the picture shows. Clearly the Zara one won't be silk either but it will do the same job as the J.Crew one and for a quarter of the price, it's definitely worth thinking about.

Predictably this Fluoro pink bag by Zatchels at Atterley Road (reduced from £60 to £29) also caught my eye. It's the type of bag that would work well now against darker coats but also on into the spring and summer. Being a cross body bag it's a brilliant style and great price too.

I think that it's fair to say that these metallic heeled loafers from Jigsaw (£84 down from £169) are quite "Marmitish". I look at them from the perspective of them having a heel (good) which is sturdy (good) and not too high (good) all of which works for the hours that I spend walking around town. I wouldn't wear them with skirts or dresses - they are more of a trouser shoe - but I do like the fact that they are an alternative to boots come the spring, that they are metallic and that they were designed in conjunction with Patrick Cox -that loafer designing genius of the 90's!

As you know, I currently have my eye on bomber jackets and this one from All Saints (£91 down from £228) is a good starting point. The sleeves and trim are burgundy, rather than brown, but I'm waiting to see whether it gets reduced any further.

GAP has a few bombers which are new in and I'm waiting to see their floral one too, which I think might be a hit.

I liked this dress so much that there's one on its way to me. As you can see, the bodice on the Atle dress from All Saints (£68.50 down from £98) is quite fitted but the skirt is a jersey fabric so it's soft and not too structured. For anyone tempted, a word of warning - this style comes up tiny, so it's necessary to go up a size. I have an evening out coming up soon so I am hoping that this will do the trick. It can also be layered up for the winter and then on through into the spring and summer.

 

Finally, these shoes from Faith, reduced from £60 to £30 are a really good buy for anyone after a mid height leopard print court shoe. Oh, that would be me then!

For anyone heading into the sales - good luck. The stores are marking down again so now is the time to find some real bargains. If they don't have your size, don't be put off - ask about inter-store transfers, postal sales or get friends on the case for you. Where there's a will there's a way!

The 12 outfits of Christmas - I wish that there was more by way of silk/heels/sequins but tomorrow is always another day!

 

The plan was, having travelled home from Wales first thing this morning, that I would change into something a little more Christmas like - maybe a dress, maybe with some accessories, maybe even some heels - so as to avoid posting another picture of jeans and a jumper (Primark jeans, All Saints jumper, Jack Wills shirt, Ash wedge trainers). Clearly that plan didn't work.  I did however notice that on Coronation Street tonight, Sally Webster was wearing a nice blue blouse and a black pencil skirt and Leanne Platt had a top with pretty sequinned sleeves - so that might be a good place for Christmas outfit ideas.

Tomorrow will be a different story - I will change 55 times and wear dresses, skirts, sequins, silk, leather and prints; possibly all at the same time. In fact my first outfit will be truly impressive and will include a red flashing nose and an elf hat with a bell on it, in addition to running gear. There will be five of us running the streets of Birmingham so do give us a wave if you see us - assuming that we haven't been carted off by then.

As to today's gift, Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without a pair of sparkly or metallic shoes so if there's one thing to add to your last minute Christmas purchases tomorrow, they should be it. Dune is a good "go to" store for sparkly shoes and I like this pair which are now priced at £34. An ankle strap may not be for everyone but it looks as though this strap can be removed and I'm sure that everyone will be too busy partying to notice the little loop! Hope that you all have a fantastic Christmas Eve!

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.

Introducing my new find.....The All Saints Pia Dress

 

My new favourite find is the All Saints Pia Jersey dress (£98) which I am wearing in ink. It also comes in charcoal and khaki marl.

Now, a word of warning about this dress - on the hanger it looks like a big piece of wonky material with arm holes at different heights and a sloping hem. On a person it looks like well.....you insert the words! No, the thing is I hunted high and low for it in store, not quite believing that the wonky tube that I was being shown was the dress that I was after, but it was.

As to my second word of warning, this dress needs to be played with - a lot! I tried on the 6 then the 8, pulled it up, pulled it down, turned it around and upside down.

I like the fact that it can be worn at any length you choose, from just below the knee to mid thigh, depending on where you make it sit on the waist. This is definitely one that I will wear out with friends, to work and all of the way through the summer, at a longer length than I am wearing it here.

This dress will go with anything from a leather jacket to a blazer or a sparkly jacket. A long cardi layered over the top will work well as does a top layered underneath. Heeled boots, wedge trainers, smoking slippers, courts or dressier heels will all go with the dress - and I plan on doing the lot. Although possibly not all at the same time because in doing so I could fall over and whilst falling over from excessive consumption of bubbly stuff is fine, falling over from trying to get too many shoes on one's feet is just stupid.

What makes a dress the perfect everyday dress?

Quite often it can be tricky to find a dress that is as versatile as we might like it to be - and sometimes whether it truly is or not, only becomes apparent once we've got it home and worn it a few times.

 

There's never going to be a "one size fits all" in that department as we are all different shapes and sizes and have different lifestyles and requirements - but for me this fluoro animal print shift from Warehouse (£50) which I featured last week, fits the bill. I've worn it to a friend's house for a birthday tea, out for dinner, to work and out for lunch.  

 

 

 

I've given it some thought and this is why I think it works for me;

• Whilst the style is fitted, it's not bodycon so I can still get in and out of the car, put the washing machine on and work in the shops and generally do what I need to do;
• There's enough room in it for me to layer a thin cotton H&M long sleeved top underneath, meaning that I don't have to cover it up with a cardi - which can totally ruin the look of a dress;
• The fact that it has sleeves also means that I don't have to cover up too much with additional layers, making it a "throw it on and go" type of dress;
• It's the right length to wear with heels or flats. I find that some dresses which are just about OK with flats can be way too short with heels;
• It wasn't so expensive that I'm worried every time that I wear it;
• I like the print and so I'm more encouraged to wear it. On the other hand, the fact that it is printed means that it's pretty obvious if I wear the same dress a lot - but I can live with that;
• The print contains both black and navy so it's easy when it comes to which coloured shoes/tights to wear with it (ie whatever comes to hand first!)

Here I'm wearing it with my favourite coral H&M necklace and my All Saints cocoon coat, plus Zara boots. Let me know if you have any thoughts on what makes your perfect everyday dress.

An All Saints Cocoon shaped coat (with wellies)?!

Here's a first peek at a Cocoon style coat which I bought from All Saints back in the summer.  I immediately loved it for its shape, weight, quality and the two rows of buttons. The fact that it was reduced from £295 to £87.50 didn't pass me by unnoticed!

 

I admit that the rest of the outfit that I was wearing to the school fireworks may not have played to its strengths and it should have perhaps have had its first outing with some leopard print heels instead of some leopard print mittens. However, the great thing about this shaped coat is that you can layer LOADS of jumpers underneath it, so I was toasty warm on a chilly night. One day soon I'll style it up with something other than wellies!

The rest of the outfit was made up of: Jigsaw hat, pale blue cashmere scarf, Whistles trousers, Joules wellies, Miss Selfridge mittens.

A school run outfit of Nike, Boden, Gap and All Saints to help with sore toes!

You may remember that I mentioned that I had somehow inadvertently ended up training for the Birmingham half marathon. Well last night saw us run 14 miles in preparation for it - just to be on the safe side. The reason that I tell you this is because it directly impacted on today's outfit.

 

My purple Nike trainers were the softest thing to wear against my slightly sore toes for the walk to school this morning. Feeling the need for warmth, comfort and the clothing equivalent of a hot stew, I also wore my Boden cashmere striped jumper together with skinny jeans and an All Saints mac. The thought of a clutch also appealed more than a handbag, so I used my snake print Marc Jacobs neon clutch instead. I have to admit that I am coming perilously close to buying a onesie to wear after the event (but don't tell anyone).  

 

Having done only a few long distance runs, I can't pretend to be an authority on them but through trial and error, and taking on board what others have said, I have found a few things that help in preparation. So for anyone interested, here goes:

• An hour's nap in the afternoon is a good plan (sneaky I know but I did our last 13 mile run after a six hour shopping day and that was really, really, hard);
• Carb loading on fresh white home baked rolls and butter an hour and half before running seems to work and it is also slightly indulgent;
• Jelly babies are good to nibble after about 10 miles and are a good distraction (but they make you really thirsty and your teeth feel horrible);
• Chatting on and off makes the time go much quicker (we tried to convince ourselves that we were in our local pub, which worked to an extent but certain things were missing ie alcohol);
• The Endomondo app is good for providing information of your speed for each km run, which oddly acts as a good motivator. It also enables you to see your speed as you are running. Naturally we concluded that it wasn't entirely accurate and that the signal failed somewhere along our tree dense route so that we were, in fact, actually faster than it gave us credit for;
• Running in trainers which don't have holes in the bottom of them is probably a good idea (well, how often are you meant to check the bottom of your trainers) and good running socks are worth their weight in gold.

If anyone else would like to share their tips I would love to hear them. Anything and everything is welcome! I would particularly like to know how to convince yourself that you are running at night time (which I much prefer) even though you are running in the morning. I'm thinking about wearing sunglasses but I'm not sure that it will work.

I'll stop wittering on about Whistles soon but first just let me show you this scarf....

Remember the Whistles terrazzo print scarf that I showed you yesterday? Well here I wore it for my final shopping day of the week. Whistles does some great prints each season and a scarf is a nice way to tap into those prints without having to spend a huge amount of money, whilst at the same time updating your wardrobe.

 

Often Whistles will do a shirt/top/skirt/dress and sometimes trousers in a print - so in a way the scarf is at the bottom of the food chain but that's fine with me. I'm not averse to scurrying around on the metaphorical sea bed of a brand! But it's hardly a hardship - I love scarves for the way that they can pull an outfit together in an instant.

 

I wore the scarf with a pale green cashmere All Saints jumper which I bought from an outlet store over the summer (which has now closed, boo!) navy Cos trousers, Zara boots and a Marc Jacobs bag. My husband bought the handbag for me as a present for our 10 year wedding anniversary which was nearly 4 years ago now. Now there's a thought - do you reckon 15 years deserves another handbag? I have nearly a year to plan. Heavens knows what he deserves....

Later on in the day I swapped the cashmere jumper for a pale pink Zara knit and the trousers for khaki green Next coated jeans - for a cooler (in the temperature sense) and slightly more relaxed look. Then I got into the school run, cooking dinner and doing the washing though so no snap of that outfit. Sorry!

Wishing you all a fantastic weekend!

A Zatchels offer for London Fashion Week

Many of you will be familiar with Zatchels - perhaps you own one, perhaps you have been pestered for one by a teenage daughter, or maybe you've spotted them on the world and his wife. Not only do these lovely bags come in a satchel style but also in a saddle bag and rucksack style. Increasingly popular, they come in fabulous colours too.

To mark London Fashion Week, Zatchels have a promotion running up until midnight on Tuesday 17th September. So, for anyone who falls into the category of wishing that they owned one but not quite having got there yet, this may help you on your way. Just enter FASHIONWEEK at the checkout to receive 20% off you new Zatchels bag.

As it so happened, I was using my Zatchels yesterday. It's a lovely grey one which was gifted to me after I wrote about a different offer that Zatchels ran in April. Sadly I don't think that it will remain mine for long as I fear that I am about to "gift" it to another member of the family.

Trainers were definitely the order of the day yesterday as the previous day I had been in London (more about that later in the week). That wasn't so much the problem as the fact that I had decided to wear, for the first time, new Zara boots minus socks. Even before I shut the front door, I knew that it was a totally daft thing to do but did I go back and do anything to fix it? No, of course I didn't. I wanted to wear the new boots, for which I have paid the price!

Anyway, with the trainers I wore a navy Zara skirt, striped lilac French Connection jumper, All Saints mac and Gap scarf. As you can see, there was a bit of a purple/lilac theme going on.  The trainers did their trick for me yesterday but every time I look at the boots I can still feel the pain!

Holiday packing - the why's, how's and why on earth?

Tomorrow we go away to Guernsey, for our final break of the summer. It's a while since I have done a post on packing but I always like taking a look to see what other people pack for their holidays and adopting (or adapting) their tips and tricks to make things easier.

 

For the beach/pool (I could be being ambitious here) I have a boy leg swimsuit from Seafolly. For similar, take a look here.  I also have Crew sunglasses and my bargain Asda hat, which is similar to one that I saw in Liberty a while back now. A bit of tactical ruching on a swimming costume, combined with a lower leg can make for an easier piece to wear on the beach than some I can think of.

 

I have a selection of tops which include two printed, one lace, one long sleeved, one striped, one sequinned and one neon. I like a wide variety of tops, largely to counteract the limited selection of bottoms that I take with me.

Experience has taught me that if I'm warm, I'm comfy and that if I'm comfy, I'm not grumpy. Well, that's the theory at least. So I have packed four jumpers - plus a cardi for travelling. Even I shouldn't be cold then.

From top left to right I have a coral H&M sweatshirt, mint cashmere jumper from All Saints, new Boden striped cashmere jumper and a black jumper from Zara which is a chunky cotton knit, slightly A-line with a zip up the back and pleats around the neckline.

As I mentioned, I have a simple selection of bottoms - 2x Gap jeans, 1x Joules skirt and also a pair of cut-offs. That's all that I will need for trips to the beach and to neighbouring islands.

 

We have one fancy pants event, which is my Dad's 70th birthday. It's being held at a Manor house on the island and is an evening event - but a fairly informal one. As part of it will be held outside, a flimsy little number won't do for me so I've opted for Jigsaw trousers (down to £79 from £139 in the sale) a Whistles sparkly jumper and Mango shoes.

 

 

This photo gives a better idea of the print on the trousers. I'm also going to wear a new bangle/cuff that I bought in the Karen Millen sale at the weekend. I felt that the bright yellow and diamonds would add a nice splash of colour to the outfit.

 

Are four bags excessive? Perhaps, especially when I'm only taking four pairs of jeans/skirts/shorts but here's how it works. The snake print bag holds the travel documents, which go in the Cath Kidston boat print bag, which I use as a handbag. To get around the limit of one piece of hand luggage, the Cath Kidston handbag goes into the larger Cath Kidston  bag which also holds my laptop and that counts as my hand luggage for the aeroplane. The striped bag is a beach bag into which the snake print bag goes with purse/keys/phone in it when I go on the beach. See, it all makes perfect sense!

As well as a good selection of tops and bags, I like a good selection of cuffs, so in addition to the Karen Millen one I also have the ones below, from left to right top row - Cochinelle, Cath Kidston, Tory Burch, Cath Kidston, Tokyo Jane and La La Rocks. To save on the weight restrictions I could well be wearing them all at once. Which gets me thinking, between us we have 10 wrists. Time to go and get some more to add to the collection.

I always find it really interesting to see what people use for skincare, hair care, make-up and nails.  I'm not sure but I think that I probably travel pretty light in that regard. Here's what I have:

Skincare - Boots face wipes, Estee Lauder advanced night cream (which I use in the daytime at the moment too) and Estee Lauder advanced night repair eye cream.

Hair care - VO5 styling wax.

Make-up

Bobbi Brown pot rouge for lips and cheeks in pale pink
Bobbi Brown lipstick in Wild Rose (more for the evening)
Clinique Chubby stick in curvy candy (daytime)
Maybelline "the falsies" volume express (fantastic mascara, I love it!)
Maybelline master smoky eye pencil in navy.

Boots nail polish remover pads and stay perfect nail colour in Me! Me! Me!

And here's one thing that I will NOT be taking with me. I saw it in H&M the other day in the maternity section. Imagine sporting that on your bump. Brilliant!