Ending 2012 with lingerie

A couple more sales bargains to post:

My favourite bra (Triumph Amourette) - yes it's probably old fashioned but I don't care - it's flattering, fab and comfortable - and this colour (which, it transpires, is extremely pretty) was reduced in John Lewis sale -

Triumph Amourette bra in Opal -

Only snag was on John Lewis site, no matching briefs to be found. Now call me picky, but if I'm investing in new underwear (at New Year especially) it has to match!

I found the matching briefs on Figleaves - and what a fantastic site that is - lots of choice and very fast service.

Triumph Amourette Briefs in Opal (also on sale at Figleaves):

I am also awaiting a delivery from net-a-porter of Elle Macpherson Intimates - can't seem to grab picture from the site - but link is here - 'Dunescape' bra and briefs 

To report back on the Topshop purchases blogged about the other day - shoes - hopeless, phone cover - hopeless - but earrings and sweater are keepers!

Happy New Year everyone! I am at home alone (with Prosecco), hoping against hope there is no vomiting later (complaints of tummies hurting at bedtime always feel me with dread!)

(Lack of photos of me due to my phone seeming to be unable to email pictures at the moment. Not that you - or indeed many - would want to see me in my underwear anyway..!)

I succumbed to Boxing Day consumerism...

...and here is my Topshop sales haul:

Patent phone sleeve - £5. I saw it the other day while Christmas shopping, stroked it and put it back as I already have a perfectly nice turquoise Smythson phone sleeve - but for £5 this is fun, will make a change, and I love the colour.

Mid heel ballerina shoes - leather - £15. Any leather shoe at £15 is likely to attract my interest - but being on the short side, a mid heeled shoe in a ballerina style is an ideal combination for me. Will be good with crops for spring.  NB also available in snake print but alas not in my size...

Rhinestone shield earrings and curve bar earrings - they just caught my eye :-)  (I may keep, I may stash somewhere in my 'handy gifts for teenagers' department.)

Ladder stripe sweater in black - £12 - looks good over a simple vest top - revealing but still demure for the rare occasions I go out for dinner.

I am now off to look wistfully at holiday websites and wish I had the time, funds and wherewithall to escape for a rest...and when I've done that I shall be heading over to bathroom suppliers' websites to see if there are any bathroom bargains to be had - I am treating myself to a new bathroom in 2013!

Hope everyone has had a lovely Christmas.

A shadow of my former self

Due to various matters outside the happy world of fashion, style and blogging, I am feeling rather under the weather. Let's just say tears have been shed over matters of the heart, and this is not the first Christmas I will remember with sadness. And I was feeling so positive and happy a few weeks ago.  Such is life, I am a big girl and will keep plodding on.

As to matters bloggy, today I wore a Helmut Lang beige / taupe (that old favourite, with me in good times and bad!) dress, with a black Gap t shirt underneath, my long White Company pendant and Aquitalia ankle boots from Russell and Bromley.

When I went out I added a Mulberry peplum jacket and a White Company tassell scarf.

Accessorised today (together with puffy eyes) with the Sainsbury's Zara-esque tote bag.

I hope everyone else is happy and well.

I wonder sometimes why my life has to be lived at such intensities of joy and sadness. Maybe it would be boring any other way....??!!

More notes from (another) shopping expedition

As it says on the tin really, am very short of time, but just 'reporting in' from a shopping trip today. Mainly Christmas shopping (i.e. not for me!) but a few things I felt were too good to miss:

H&M sparkly top dress - really nice - £14.99 - bought? Kerching - you bet!!

H&M hessian sack.... er no wait, actually long knit tunic - for some reason I can't quite fathom - also really like. Bought. £24.00 - unsure why so much more than dress?

H&M zip front dress. Liked. Bought. OH decalres it tarty (?!). Ignoring him for the time being, naturellement - until I get YOUR verdict...!

H&M red crops. Similar to some from Boden which I never got around to ordering. Didn't get. (a) too springlike. (b) Bad fit at rear.

 Sparkly skirt from Topshop. Velvet fabric, stretchy. Should have been great.

But how annoying it is when the patterns don't match at the sides?!  Didn't get. Not terribly flattering over the lumps and bumps anyway I felt. Probably made worse by fact that tried on over trousers as was getting fed up / tired - so didn't give it my best shot!

Shopping ensemble (only included for benefit of decent lighting!)

Love the H&M dress - am out this evening and am wearing it :-)

Assorted daily wear

It's been a bit quiet on the blogging front for me - apologies. It's been a bit hectic here and I barely managed to take a photo each day - but take it I did (dubious quality I'm afraid but hope you get the general idea...)

I must say thank you to Kat from Does my bum look 40 for her tip about Sainsbury's. I liked the 25% off and the spanx type slip she blogged about the other day - couldn't find that but did get the Gok dress and also a rather fab plaited handle shopper.  Dress worked out at £33 something (with the 25% off) and bag about £11 I think. Sorry for my vague pricing - I make a habit of it!!!  Both bargains anyway and the whole shop evened out OK give or take a chicken or two.

Here comes a medley of outfits from the past week:

White Company grey heart print scarf
H&M biker style black felt jacket
Black Gok dress from Sainsbury's
Black Sainsbury's bag

Close up of the Sainsbury's bag

White Company stepped hem sweater
Pure collection snood
Coated jeggings
White Company long pendant
Mulberry Roxanne bag

Crumpet navy feather print scarf
New Look jersey blazer
Primark navy skinny jeans
Primark wedge boots

Pure collection snood
White company grey cashmere tunic
Gap Body long sleeved t shirt
Coated jeggings
Russell & Bromley / Aquitalia ankle boots

Will try to do better next week - but can't imagine how.. Christmas officially seems to 'have started' and I am running out of days to shop / post / fit in all the requisite social engagements - December diary is looking scarily choc-a-bloc already!!

Weekend wear

I have a confession. I kept the White Company 'fluttery sleeve' sweater (or whatever other awful name it had).

It feels nice - be gentle with me!  I also feel that the fluttery sleeves help to balance out a wider pear shaped lower half(?).  Because it is short sleeved, I layered it over a basic black long sleeved Gap 'Body' t shirt.

I wore it today with my new coated 'jeggings' (help! - my wardrobe is turning into a showcase of badly named items...)  Not that you can see the coating sadly, but refer to my earlier post here (Third pic up from bottom) for better shot.

Also worn was my White Company grey heart print scarf and the long suffering Primark black lace-up wedge boots.

Yes I know, it all looks black... sigh. Promise will use a public changing room for the next pic!

I have a beauty buy to report on also. These shadow liners from Boots No 7 range are rather fab. Especially given the time of year and the fact that there may be a smidge more socialising to be done than normally occurs in my mundane existence!

I bought one of each as couldn't decide.  However, it was a triple points weekend - and if you bought one you got one half price (or something) so it seemed a good deal.

I especially like the grey one as it has sparkles in. :-)  Me. Sparkles. Fairy lights. Sad!

The prettiest things

Oh, I am a sucker for pretty things at the moment!

Continuing my quest for all things Christmassy led me to Poundland (the tackier the better where baubles are concerned I say! Although they were surprisingly nice).  While there I found some oh-so-cute little fairly lights to adorn my screen, pictures, desk, kitchen.... you name it, they would be perfect anywhere. And at £1 a pop?!!  (Last year I almost bought some on Amazon for about £9 and I thought THAT was good!)  I am planning to stock up - and at that price will be having 10 times as many as planned last year  - for same outlay :-)

Here they are (with apologies for the crumpled quilt cover in the 2nd photo....oh dear,  ironing is strictly on a 'needs must' basis nowadays....)

I also must share some fab earrings I found in M&S the other day.

They are (again, blush!) M&S Woman and silver plated.  £6.50. Look really good I think. I don't normally wear hoops but I do like these, and they look better in real life!  (My photography skills - or lack of! again.)

I saw a lady wearing some like it (may have been the same model) on the bus from the park and ride the other day (unlikely source of inspiration I know...) and admired them.  Lo and behold M&S came up trumps again.

Finally a tutorial for the 'long' snood - which admittedly requires a bit more fiddling than comes naturally to one such as me, so there are are a few more steps (only a few) than the the 3-step 'bung on head' approach I employed before. For your amusement here goes:

Snood in question is the reversible stripe snood from the White Company (tres toasty). Worn with White Company navy 'diamond insert' jersey dress (tres flattering).  Have a bit of a thing going on with White Company at moment. So much so that I've just received a £10 gift voucher!  (Then again, probably so has everyone else on their mailing list - times are hard!!)

Sparkle. (I declare it's time for Christmas.)

I am usually rather a humbug when it comes to Christmas, too much expense, too much stress, too much tat. But this year, something's different, something's in the air... and I am feeling exceedingly Christmassy!  This only happens about once every 20 years, and I last enjoyed Christmas circa 1984 so I am going to make the most of it.

As to general festivities, decorations and sparkle, I can normally take it or leave it - but this year I am going to 'deck the halls'.

I heard Wham!'s 'Last Christmas' while at the shops yesterday and that's nailed it: I am now officially in full Christmas mode!  (Sad I know, but that's me.)

To enter into the spirit of it, I found some great sparkly things while wandering around the shops yesterday. This may suggest that I am going to 'deck' my person as well - but fear not; honestly they don't look that bad or OTT in real life (I hope!)...  They just appealed :-)

H&M Sparkly scarf - £7.99

H&M Sparkly tights - £6.99
I think they are navy. But my eyesight has come out in sympathy with my photography and I'm not so sure.... 

Today's outfit below:

Another purchase from H&M - cream jumper - £14.99, and tear drop pendant from the White Company.  With navy cord M&S Woman (it pains me to type that) skirt. Primark wedge ankle boots.

Right.... now I'm off to find my Wham! CD.....

Notes from a shopping excursion (with snood 'tutorial')

I ended up in the city today, the plan was to have a coffee, a croissant and buy candles.

The reality was have a coffee (way hey!), a cheese scone, but no candles......

.......er but instead buy several scarves, a jacket, 3 jumpers and a necklace.  Must try harder.  In my defence I won't keep everything, I like to try it on at home before finally deciding.

Although on that note, I have a treat for you.....drum roll - decent photos!! (Well, decent-ish for me, i.e. you can just about make out the colours of the garments!)

I decided to have a little experimenting with changing room photography, the results as you'll see below, are variable. Some (changing rooms) are so dimly lit and garishly decorated you could be forgiven for thinking you were in a house of ill repute.

Whilst in one, and disrobed from the snood, it seemed a good opportunity to do the snood 'tutorial'. It's not really a tutorial. I lack finesse in many areas, and bunging a snood over my head is sadly one of them.  If it ends up looking half decent this is due either to the ingenuity of the designer or some stroke of fortune not associated with my dressing skills.

So - what do you want first - the decent photos or the snood tutorial?

Let's go with the snood - to give everyone a good laugh.

Step 1 - put snood on top of head

Step 2 - pull down over head and face - (excuse shaky photo - literally taken blind!)

Step 3 - pull down to neck and hope it looks half decent - yep that'll do. Fiddling never improves matters (in my experience). 

In no particular order a selection of photos from the day - some items were bought, some not...

New Look biker style gilet - (not bought)

White Company flutter sleeve sweater - bought but will be going back - (what was I thinking?!)

Per Una coat - not bought but liked the look of it

New Look crystal scarf - bought but then hastily returned - the crystals turned out to be skulls (which I hate!!)

M&S Limited Collection trousers - looked OK on the hanger NOT BOUGHT - good grief!!

New Look sweater with crystal decoration - looked OK on the hanger. On? Er... I think not - looks like someone's sneezed over me

River Island Molly Coated Jeggings - not bought - refuse to pay £40 for one season wonder

H&M jacket - like - bought

New Look leopard print sweater - not bought, but hmmmm, may re-visit.

So - what do you think... did I make the right choices?!

How to look like a sack of spuds

My new cashmere poncho arrived from White Company today, to much glee.

Sadly I was rather underwhelmed when I unwrapped it, for the tissue and the poncho were both very crumpled and looked as if it had come to me straight from the hands of another customer who had returned it with none too much care in the wrapping.  Frankly for £112 I expected better.

Moving onto the trying on session...
Pros:  warm, soft and covers a multitude of sins. 
Cons: possibly also equal boring and shapeless (not to mention, amongst my colour palette, beige is fast becoming ubiquitous).  

Soft as a baby's bum however, and no doubt will be very cosy.  So far so good on the practicality front. I am not 100% convinced that it doesn't make me look like I've gained 10lb overnight however.

Maybe I just need to get used to the loose cape-like look.  Or exchange for a smaller (and hopefully better packed) version...?

At least beige doesn't look black when I take the picture...

Worn with:

 Zara jeans and Primark wedge boots (not that these show up of course!!)

Plus White Company star scarf in picture 1 and Pure Collection ribbed cashmere snood in picture 2.

Several shades of navy

My day off today didn't go exactly according to plan (not in a bad way, just different).

Due to the weather I abandoned my plan to go to the nearest city for a bit of soggy retail therapy at the White Company, and headed even further into the rural hinterland instead.

Admittedly this little excursion did not net me any candles (or croissants actually) but did get a lovely lunch and reminder of what a beautiful part of the country we are lucky enough to live in.

Also got to spend some time with OH - which is a rarity as we both work irregular hours. We are like the proverbial ships passing in the night most of the time!

Lunch at The Red Lion.

When it looks this pretty, even I like the snow!

Today it was back to navy and neutrals, and I apologise for the photo which is another of my classic 'no matter what she's wearing it looks black' efforts....  Jacket and trousers actually navy.  (I've tried to enhance it with my picture software, but think I probably made it worse!)

Navy jersey blazer from New Look

Navy long line sweater from H&M

Navy skinny trousers from Primark

Boots from Primark (love these - and so comfortable)

Tassel scarf from The White Company 

(Code OCD20 for 20% off and free P&P at The White Company)