Outfit: Cold Friday

It’s cold and frosty this morning so boots, socks and a scarf are all an integral part of my outfit today. You can see them, but I have knee high socks under my jeans, and a pair of thick sports socks over those. Partly for warmth, partly because my new boots are a little on the large side. However, my feet are still cold. I am using my bright pink coat today so had to don a second scarf with it to prevent a hideous clash between the coat and the red scarf that is part of my outifit.

Black sweater – Long Tall Sally
Dark jeans – Dorothy Perkins Tall
Red scarf – made to match a bridesmaid dress in 2006
Black faux suede boots – Priceless Shoes
Red belt (on jeans) – Next

Total Est Cost £57

20% Off Everything at Barratts!

Want some new shoes at a discount price? Barratts are currently offering 20% off everything with the code XMASB. This is for a limited time only (though the website helpfully doesn’t say how limited that time is) so get yourself over there quick!

Outfit: Thursday

Hands down, my favourite colour of tights this winter? Purple. So that’s why I’m wearing them again. I’ve not worn this belt for ages and thought the flash of yellow would be a good contrast with the purple tights.

Black polo neck sweater – Long Tall Sally
Denim skirt – Gap
Purple tights – Accessorize
Black flat over the knee boots – Matalan
Yellow belt – charity shop

Total Est. Cost £63.50

Outfit: Wednesday Evening

Some of the members of my drama group met to have tea at the local Wetherspoon’s pub before the rehearsal last night. We often do this to celebrate people’s birthdays. Then it was on to rehearsal for some singing.

Grey v neck sweater – Ethel Austin
Grey polo neck sweater – Long Tall Sally
Skinny jeans – Gap
Grey boots – Priceless Shoes

Total Est. Cost £65

Should We Keep Shopping to Save the Economy?

Various arguments for and against are set out here but my when my old universitly lecturer Prof. John Sloman (at the bottom of the article) is advocating not stopping shopping, who am I to argue? Of course he is not advocating reckless spending thst you can’t afford, but everything in moderation as the saying goes.

Outfit: Grey & Teal

I was tempted to wear a shorter skirt today but these boots are higher than my other over the knee pair so I thought I should keep it more demure with a polo neck and knee length skirt. Loving the boots though. They are very cosy because they keep your knees warm too.

Grey polo neck sweater – Long Tall Sally
Teal skirt – H&M
Teal tights – Accessorize
Grey boots – Priceless Shoes
Teal & silver bangles – Accessorize

Total Est. Cost £74

Note To Self…

…when it’s as cold out as it was yesterday, fingerless gloves just won’t cut it anymore. You need the real thing.

New Boots

So remember how I said last week that I might have placed an order in the Priceless Shoes sale? Well yesterday my order arrived. The boots I am wearing today were £10.

These fab grey over the knee boots were £20. (I was going to buy some similar about 6 months ago but they sold out before I got around to doing so.)

And these black ones were £8. They are described as ‘high leg’ but I think ‘mid-calf’ would be more accurate although that could just be the length of my legs. Nonetheless they have a low heel and a rubber sole so should be fairly comfy, and that is why I bought them after all. They will be great under jeans because they are stretchy and therefore neat on the leg.

As always the service from Priceless was fantastic. I ordered Thursday morning and received an email on Sunday afternoon to say my order had been dispatched. It was delivered mid-morning yesterday (Monday).

Outfit: Tuesday Style Stealer!

One of the great things about reading other people’s style blogs is that you get inspiration for your own outfits. I will often see something on someone else’s blog that looks fantastic and think about how I can adapt it to work with items I have in my wardrobe. The inspiration for Sunday’s outfit came from something Londyn wore the other week, and today’s idea borrows heavily from her again. I would have completely copied Londyn and put my pink shoes with this outfit, but when these booties arrived from Priceless yesterday, I couldn’t not wear them. They looked like they would be a pinky colour from the picture on the website (they are described as 'lilac') but when they arrived they are in fact a lovely plum colour.

Black waistcoat – Next Tall
Plaid shirt – Primark
Black cami – 3 Suisses
Black cord trousers – Topshop Tall
Purple shoe boots – Priceless Shoes
Purple necklace – Scope

Total Est. Cost £75

This Week I Will Be Mostly…

…wearing boots
…reading the December issue of Lucky magazine
…watching Love Actually with the director’s commentary on. If you’ve never done this, do so immediately. It features Hugh Grant, Richard Curtis, Bill Nighy and Thomas Sangster (the young boy) talking about the film and it’s hilarious.
…listening to Christmas tunes to get myself in the mood for writing cards and wrapping gifts
…eating sandwiches
…shopping online at Priceless Shoes

Outfit: Black & Red

Keeping it simple but smart for an ordinary Monday at work. Roll on the Christmas holidays!

Black polo neck sweater – Long Tall Sally
Black pencil skirt – Long Tall Sally
Black tights – George at Asda
Red boots – Goszip (charity shop)
Red belt – Market stall at the mall
Red beads – Ethel Austin

Total Est. Cost £63

Outfit: Sunday Lunch

We are going over to my parents’ house shortly for Sunday lunch. It is my dad’s birthday on Wednesday so it’s an early celebration of that.

Cream shrug – Long Tall Sally (eBay)
Red long sleeve t – Long Tall Sally
Jeans – Gap
Leopard print shoes – New Look (eBay)
Black belt – Leather shop in Crete
Red bangles – Primark

Total Est. Cost £89

Outfit: Bundled Up Against The Cold

The forecast was for highs of 2˚C today. I spent the morning doing chores and making a start on writing my Christmas cards. This afternoon I ventured out for a walk up to the local retail park to make a start on Christmas shopping. I got a couple of gifts but boy, was it cold! Fortunately I was well wrapped up.

Grey wool mix beret – Long Tall Sally
Grey wool mix scarf – Gap
Black/white/grey houndstooth coat – Dorothy Perkins Tall (eBay)
Skinny jeans – Gap
Chestnut suede boots – EMU Australia (On Shoes)
Grey wool mix fingerless gloves – Long Tall Sally
Grey polo neck sweater (not seen) – Long Tall Sally

Total Est. Cost £77

Outfit: Friday Night

We went into the city and met some friends for a Thai meal. It was delicious and the restaurant was lovely. Afterwards we headed to a bar for a drink before the friends had to leave to catch the train home. I was going to wear a cami and a shrug but after I noticed that the temperature was only 3˚C at 4pm and it was trying to snow, I decided a sweater would be a more sensible option.

Black sweater – Long Tall Sally
Grey jeans – Primark
Teal boots – Faith
Teal scarf – Marks & Spencer
Teal necklace – Scope

Total Est. Cost £81

An Open Letter Zara

Dear Zara
When you first opened in the UK, I had such high hopes. I saw you as Gap’s Spanish cousin, there were pieces to be had at bargain prices and best of all, your trousers came in super long lengths. But then, slowly, your sizing became erratic and your trouser legs got so narrow I could no longer squeeze my averaged-size 14 legs into them. So come on Zara, sort it out. Widen the thighs on your trousers – most British women do not look like Kate Moss. And please, let’s lose the S/M/L sizing system for something we can actually understand, such as European sizes rather than Mexican ones. Also, if you are going to mark up the prices when you convert from Euros into Bristish pounds, take the time to print a new tag and don’t just stick a label with the Bristish price over the European one. We will peel it off and not be happy when we see the difference. Just saying.
Thanks.

Outfit: Cheerful Friday

It’s Friday so instead of the grey sweater I thought about wearing, I opted to brighten things up with a bit of yellow instead. I had my hair cut yesterday afternoon so I’ve doctored the second photo a little with Paint.net to brighten it up so you can see my hair a bit better. It’s not vastly different to how it was before but it’s always nice not to have the front bits in my eyes anymore.
Also, my socks are not white, they are black, grey and white striped – typical that the white section would be showing so vividly on the picture!
Going out with some friends this evening so I’m currently trying to decide what to wear!

Yellow dress/tunic – Primark (charity shop)
Black polo neck sweater – Long Tall Sally
Jeans – Zara
Black Obi belt – ASOS
Stripey socks – Topshop?
Yellow wedges – Priceless Shoes

Total Est. Cost £73

Sale & Free Shipping At Priceless Shoes

Priceless Shoes have reduced many of their sale shoes to £5 and many of their sale boots to £10. They are also still offering free shipping on orders over £30 using code FREEDLP.
I may have put in an order this morning… details to follow when my goodies arrive.

Matalan To Offer Online Shopping Next Year!

Remember my rant the other week about stores not offering transactional websites? It looks like Matalan sat up and took notice because I read on Dressed and Pressed today that they will be offering online shopping from next year! The full collection will not be available to start with, but some items will be better than nothing, especially if you can get hold of elusive shoes without having to trail around 3 different stores to find them. You can also check out some pictures of the new S/S 09 collection at that link.

Outfit: Teal

I just love the colour teal and wondered how putting together a whole outfit in it would work. It’s pretty good, but I decided to break up the colour (and add warmth) with a sweater.

Black sweater – Long Tall Sally
Teal long sleeve t – H&M
Teal skirt – H&M
Teal tights – Accessorize
Black patent shoes – Matalan
Teal necklace – Scope
Teal & silver bangles – Accessorize

Total Est. Cost £75

Outfit: Musical Drama Group Rehearsal

Just something casual but warm for another evening in a cold church hall, singing.

Purple tank – Long Tall Sally
Black polo neck sweater – Long Tall Sally
Grey jeans – Gap
Grey boots – ASOS

Total Est. Cost £89

Note To Self…

…only leave 7 weeks between haircuts in future because you always spend the 8th week wishing your appointment was a week earlier.

Outfit: Argyle Sweater

This sweater is lightweight but it’s pretty cost nonetheless. The skirt is wool and the boots help to keep out the chill. I’m loving purple tights at the moment and am so glad I purchased a second pair.

Black/grey/purple Argyle sweater – Next Tall
Grey wool skirt – Gap
White shirt – Long Tall Sally
Purple tights – New Look
Black faux suede boots – Priceless Shoes
Purple necklace – Scope

Total Est. Cost £109

Outfit: Grey & Purple

Got my cosy sweater dress on today. The sleeves are so long that it’s like I’ve still got my fingerless gloves on. I could do with a purple belt but as I don’t have one at present I thought black would do just as well.

Grey sweater dress – Tall Girls
Purple tights – Accessorize
Grey boots – ASOS
Black patent belt – Primark

Total Est. Cost £82.50

EDIT: Especially for Caroline, a pic without the belt

Outfit: EMU Boots

The reasons for this outfit were two-fold. Firstly, I was trying to channel an outfit I saw on TV on Sunday night. I watched a film called ‘Keeping Mum’ and Kristin Scott Thomas’s character spent much of the time in a grey polo neck sweater, jeans and UGG boots. My grey polo neck is in the wash so I had to go for black instead. I’ll go with grey next time I need a comfy, casual outfit. Secondly, the blisters on my feet were a bit sore so I figured that my EMU boots were the best bet for comfort. It was definitely a good idea putting them in the car yesterday to tramp around Tesco in.

Black rib polo neck sweater – Marks & Spencer
Jeans – Next
Chestnut suede boots – EMU Australia (On Shoes)
Black leather belt (on jeans) – local boutique

Total Est. Cost £46

Scarf

I added a silk scarf to my outfit this morning, and tried out the Chi-Chi style of wearing it, as named by Kasmira last week. I also slicked on some red lipstick after breakfast to match my dress.

Brown ombre silk scarf - M&Co

BBC's list of 100 Best Fiction

I pinched this list from Fabulously Broke in the City as I always list what I’m reading each week. However, as I tend to read more magazines than books, and then chick-lit when I do read books, my in-roads into this list are fairly poor!

BOLD = Read
NOT bolded = Unread

1. The Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. Tolkien
2. Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
3. His Dark Materials, Philip Pullman
4. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams
5. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, JK Rowling
6. To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
7. Winnie the Pooh, AA Milne
8. Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell
9. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, CS Lewis
10. Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë
11. Catch-22, Joseph Heller
12. Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë
13. Birdsong, Sebastian Faulks
14. Rebecca, Daphne du Maurier
15. The Catcher in the Rye, JD Salinger
16. The Wind in the Willows, Kenneth Grahame
17. Great Expectations, Charles Dickens
18. Little Women, Louisa May Alcott
19. Captain Corelli's Mandolin, Louis de Bernieres
20. War and Peace, Leo Tolstoy
21. Gone with the Wind, Margaret Mitchell
22. Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone, JK Rowling
23. Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets, JK Rowling
24. Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban, JK Rowling
25. The Hobbit, JRR Tolkien
26. Tess Of The D'Urbervilles, Thomas Hardy
27. Middlemarch, George Eliot
28. A Prayer For Owen Meany, John Irving
29. The Grapes Of Wrath, John Steinbeck
30. Alice's Adventures In Wonderland, Lewis Carroll
31. The Story Of Tracy Beaker, Jacqueline Wilson
32. One Hundred Years Of Solitude, Gabriel García Márquez
33. The Pillars Of The Earth, Ken Follett
34. David Copperfield, Charles Dickens
35. Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl
36. Treasure Island, Robert Louis Stevenson
37. A Town Like Alice, Nevil Shute
38. Persuasion, Jane Austen
39. Dune, Frank Herbert
40. Emma, Jane Austen
41. Anne Of Green Gables, LM Montgomery
42. Watership Down, Richard Adams
43. The Great Gatsby, F Scott Fitzgerald
44. The Count Of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas
45. Brideshead Revisited, Evelyn Waugh
46. Animal Farm, George Orwell
47. A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens
48. Far From The Madding Crowd, Thomas Hardy
49. Goodnight Mister Tom, Michelle Magorian
50. The Shell Seekers, Rosamunde Pilcher
51. The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett
52. Of Mice And Men, John Steinbeck
53. The Stand, Stephen King
54. Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy
55. A Suitable Boy, Vikram Seth
56. The BFG, Roald Dahl
57. Swallows And Amazons, Arthur Ransome
58. Black Beauty, Anna Sewell
59. Artemis Fowl, Eoin Colfer
60. Crime And Punishment, Fyodor Dostoyevsky
61. Noughts And Crosses, Malorie Blackman
62. Memoirs Of A Geisha, Arthur Golden
63. A Tale Of Two Cities, Charles Dickens
64. The Thorn Birds, Colleen McCollough
65. Mort, Terry Pratchett
66. The Magic Faraway Tree, Enid Blyton
67. The Magus, John Fowles
68. Good Omens, Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman
69. Guards! Guards!, Terry Pratchett
70. Lord Of The Flies, William Golding
71. Perfume, Patrick Süskind
72. The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, Robert Tressell
73. Night Watch, Terry Pratchett
74. Matilda, Roald Dahl
75. Bridget Jones's Diary, Helen Fielding
76. The Secret History, Donna Tartt
77. The Woman In White, Wilkie Collins
78. Ulysses, James Joyce
79. Bleak House, Charles Dickens
80. Double Act, Jacqueline Wilson
81. The Twits, Roald Dahl
82. I Capture The Castle, Dodie Smith
83. Holes, Louis Sachar
84. Gormenghast, Mervyn Peake
85. The God Of Small Things, Arundhati Roy
86. Vicky Angel, Jacqueline Wilson
87. Brave New World, Aldous Huxley
88. Cold Comfort Farm, Stella Gibbons
89. Magician, Raymond E Feist
90. On The Road, Jack Kerouac
91. The Godfather, Mario Puzo
92. The Clan Of The Cave Bear, Jean M Auel
93. The Colour Of Magic, Terry Pratchett
94. The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho
95. Katherine, Anya Seton
96. Kane And Abel, Jeffrey Archer
97. Love In The Time Of Cholera, Gabriel García Márquez
98. Girls In Love, Jacqueline Wilson
99. The Princess Diaries, Meg Cabot
100. Midnight's Children, Salman Rushdie

This Week I Will Be Mostly…

…wearing something warm
…reading ‘Baby Proof’ by Emily Giffin
…watching 'Love Actually'. It's 5 weeks to Christmas!
…listening to Handel’s ‘Messiah’
…eating chocolate mousse
…shopping on eBay

Outfit: Red & Tan Monday

I had to wear my new dress today. I put it with tan accessories as that’s a combination I’ve done before with my other red dress and I think it works well. It’s cold out today, just 3˚C this morning so a knit dress and boots was a good choice. Following our walk yesterday I have 4 blisters so have stashed my EMU boots in the car. I have to go to Tesco this afternoon so I might be in need of EMU comfort by then.
I feel quite festive in this dress, it’s the kind of red I associate with Christmas.

Red knit dress – Long Tall Sally (eBay)
Brown tights – New Look
Tan boots – Faith
Tan obi belt – ASOS

Total Est. Cost £82.25

Review: Nails Inc Nail Polish

If you buy this month’s Glamour magazine (UK edition) you get a free bottle of Nails Inc polish. There are 4 colours to choose from and at only £2 each, you could collect the lot! I chose the Victoria shade, a rich, dark purple. I used it last week and was very impressed. I put it on Friday afternoon and it did not chip until the following Thursday evening. I did use Sally Hansen top coat but then I always use that and none of my other polishes have ever lasted as long as this one. I would highly recommend trying it out whilst it is available for £2.

eBay Bargain: Long Tall Sally Red Dress

This arrived yesterday, it is brand new. I won it for £7.25, it would have cost £49 new last year so I know I got a bargain! I have this dress in brown and love it. I deliberated over which colour to get last year and ended up with the brown thinking I’d get more wear out of it. But for £7.25 I’m pleased I now have both colours.

Why I Love… My Over Knee Boots

Over the knee boots are everywhere this autumn/winter as they were all over the catwalks in March. I think they were around in previous years (given the abundance of them on eBay they must have been) but perhaps I just didn’t notice. I got my pair in Priceless Shoes for just £20 and they must have been a popular style as they are no longer available. I love them because they make short dresses look longer – the boot come higher up your leg meaning there is less leg visible between boot and dress/skirt giving the illusion that the dress is longer than it actually is. Well that’s my theory anyway. I think the trick to wearing over the knee boots, especially heeled ones, is to buy them in suede or faux suede. Doing so means you can neatly avoid any ‘Pretty Woman’ connotations. The other option is to not have them in black. Faith have some fabulous tan coloured leather ones at the moment, and again, these are not going to look Pretty Woman-like because they are tan.

Sunday

No outfit picture today. My hair was a mess (needed washing) and so I just scraped it back as we were going for a walk. We walked 8 miles, stopped en route at 2 pubs and at the chippy for a fish buttie. It was lovely & sunny but cold. Just right for an autumn afternoon.
I wore jeans and my grey polo neck sweater, with my riding boots and a blue fleece over the top.
I had a shower when we got home and am just in jeans and my long blue/grey cardi now with my pink boot slippers so not really picture worthy either!

Outfit: Saturday Casuals

I made leek and potato soup this morning as my sister came over for dinner. Then the two of us went out to the local town and bought items to go in shoeboxes for the Operation Christmas Child project. We got some nice bits and pieces then returned home for a cup of tea and a cake. I’m not sure whether the young man and I will venture to the pub later or have a quiet evening at home.

Plaid shirt – Primark

Black Tank - Cherokee at Tesco
Black studded belt – Dorothy Perkins
Skinny jeans – Gap
Black flats – Priceless Shoes
Teal necklace – Scope

Teal & silver bangles - Accessorize

Total Est. Cost £36

Outfit: Poncho!

Kasmira is trying to bring back the poncho and Spiragirl stepped in to help earlier in the week. Now it’s my turn. I bought this in the autumn of 2004 I think, and it’s been languishing in my wardrobe for the past few years. It’s pretty warm so will be a useful addition to my winter wardrobe.
When I biught this brown sweater and the one in grey a few months back I said I would probably live in them all season. That is proving to be the case – I think I’ve worn the grey and last year’s black version all week so far!

Brown poncho – outlet mall
Brown polo neck sweater – Long Tall Sally
Skinny jeans – Topshop Tall
Brown leather boots – Faith
Brown & silver bangles – Dorothy Perkins

Total Est. Cost £109

10% Discount At Shoe Parlor!

The lovely folks over at Shoe Parlor are offering a 10% discount to all my readers. Use the code SHOEGALSP to save 10% on your purchases (excluding UGGs and sale items). Click on the banner above or at the side.

Outfit: Pink Swirl Print Dress

A more colourful outfit today, as promised! I thought about wearing this dress with pink tights but decided I was already pushing it a bit with the length so leggings were the safer option.

Pink swirl print dress – eBay
Black polo neck sweater – Long Tall Sally
Black leggings – Long Tall Sally
Black over knee boots – Priceless Shoes

Total Est. Cost £53.50

Outfit: Grey & Black

For some reason I’m loving neutrals this week. I’ll try be a bit more colourful tomorrow! It’s drama group tonight so I’m sure it will be cold.

Black waistcoat – Next Tall
Grey polo neck sweater – Long Tall Sally
Grey jeans – Primark
Black faux suede over knee boots – Priceless Shoes

Total Est. Cost £76

UPDATE: I changed my mind about the boots and ended up wearing my green suede River Island ones instead.

Why I Love... My Tumble Dryer

I know it’s not particularly environmentally friendly, but I would not be without my tumble dryer at the moment. When you work all day and it’s cold, dark and wet outside when you are at home, it’s a godsend to be able to just throw most of my washing in the dryer. I used to dry indoors in the conservatory, and still do on wet days in the summer. But in the winter it is so cold in there that nothing dries, it just hangs around wet for a week and starts to smell funny. I hate having wet washing in rooms we actually use – one or two things on an airer I can cope with but not a whole load. I am so pleased therefore that the most of the tops I have bought recently from Long Tall Sally can be tumble dried. It makes me happy to wear them often, knowing I will be able to wash and dry them efficiently.

Weather Report

I was listening to the Eagles song ‘Desperado’ last night. Glenn Frey and Don Henley clearly spent some time in Yorkshire during the winter when they wrote the lyrics:
“Don’t your feet get cold in the winter time?
The sky won’t snow and the sun won’t shine.
It’s hard to tell the night-time from the day.”

Right now, it’s getting dark (it’s 2.30 in the afternoon!) and it’s although it’s cold outside, it’s raining rather than snowing. This seems to be the story of Yorkshire winters these days. I can remember when I was a child it used to snow so much it would come over the tops of your Wellington boots. I have pictures of me, my sister and two of our friends playing in the snow when we were around 6 or 7. The school was closed that day because the snow was so bad the teachers couldn’t get in. We are all wrapped up in waterproofs, woolly hats and scarves, our faces red and smiling from the great time we were having. Kids these days don’t really know what snow is. They think it’s something that happens in the morning and is gone by lunchtime. Snow scenes on Christmas cards to them are just that – scenes on Christmas cards. Given that we don’t get proper summers anymore, I find it rather unfair that we are also being robbed of what I would call a real winter – ie. One with frost and snow for more than half a day at a time. I would love to spend a year or so living somewhere that has proper seasons. Somewhere like New England where, as the great Bill Bryson says, you don’t mind the cold hard winters so much because you know you will get a hot summer to follow.
It would make wardrobe planning far easier I feel – you would know that you didn’t need a sweater in summer and could be confident that you are not going to overheat in a thick coat during the winter.

Outfit: Leopard Shoes

It’s not supposed to rain today so I thought I’d take a chance and wear shoes. My feet are cold right now though.

Black knit dress – Long Tall Sally
Black tights – Silkies
Black patent belt – Primark
Leopard print shoes – New Look (eBay)
Purple necklace – Scope

Total Est. Cost £65.50

Outfit: Grey & Blue Tuesday

I love this dress. I bought it a couple of years ago in the spring. It is made of cotton so it’s really a summer dress, but because of the dark colour it works well all year round. You just need to layer up with tights and a sweater in the autumn and winter.

Navy dress – Next
Grey polo neck sweater – Long Tall Sally
Grey wool tights – Levante at MyTights.com
Grey boots – ASOS
Blue Obi belt – ASOS
Blue heart pendant – Scope

Total Est. Cost £106

This Week I Will Be Mostly…

…wearing dresses and boots
…reading the December issues of my favourite magazines
…watching Life on Mars season 1 (the DVD player didn’t work last week so I never got to watching any of it)
…listening to Terry Wogan
…eating sandwiches
…shopping for nothing

Outfit: Black & White

There’s just a little flash of colour visible today, and that’s my bright blue tights. I may need to move desks at work so flat boots seemed like a good idea for that.

Black & white dress – charity shop
Black polo neck sweater – Long Tall Sally
Blue tights – Accessorize
Black faux suede boots – Matalan
Black patent belt – Primark
Blue beads – Scope

Total Est. Cost £57

Choosing Outfits

Many of the bloggers I know plan their outfits in advance – either the night before or a whole week’s worth on a Sunday. I have to plan mine the night before as I get up earlier than the young man so need to have everything laid out in the spare room so I don’t have to get dressed in the dark. As I have mentioned before, I keep a lookbook – a large notebook with cuttings from magazines – and this often serves as inspiration for my outfits. However, what I also do is spend an hour or so looking through my lookbook and writing down outfit ideas in another notebook. That way, if I lack inspiration on an evening, or I am simply too tired to think about what to wear the following day, I can just pick an outfit from my notebook in a ‘here’s one I made earlier’ kind of way. I have just spent part of this afternoon doing this and so I have a whole load of ideas in stock and waiting to become reality.

Outfit: Church on Sunday

I got this skirt whilst I was out thrifting on Wednesday. I threw it straight into the washing machine and it’s taken until this morning to dry. I dry items that can’t be tumble dried in the conservatory and it’s so cold in there that it takes days. Time to move my airer to the radiator in the spare room I think.

Black cashmere sweater – Florence + Fred at Tesco
White shirt – Next
Beige cord skirt – Dorothy Perkins (charity shop)
Black tights – ASDA
Black riding boots – Tall Girls
Purple necklace – Scope

Total Est. Cost £121.50

More New Boots!

Yes, I have been a bit naughty this week. I ordered these from ASOS on Thursday and as I selected the next day delivery option they were delivered on Friday afternoon. I haven’t had chance to wear them yet, but am mentally planning outfits around them.
As always, the service from ASOS was impeccable, and they enclosed a free pack of Wet Wipes in the parcel.

15% Off At Priceless Shoes

There is a Priceless Shoes 15% off voucher in the 16th November issue of More magazine. This can be used in store or online.

Wanted: Primark Purple Boots

Just £15 in Primark. If anyone sees these in Primark in a size 8, please buy them for me and I will Paypal you the money to send them to me. My local store doesn’t have them and don’t know whether they will get any more in. They also come in grey and I would take those in an 8 too.

Outfit: Friday Night Cocktails

Some friends of ours are moving abroad next week and so we spent last night at TGI Fridays having cocktails.

Black wrap cardi – Long Tall Sally (eBay)
Teal cami – Long Tall Sally
Grey jeans – Primark
Black boots – New Look (eBay)
Teal necklace – Scope
Teal & silver bangles – Accessorize

Total Est. Cost £30

New Boots

I chanced it at Matalan again today and they had the boots I wanted! However, the only pair in my size was slightly damaged – some of the faux suede had rubbed off one of the toes. Because of this I managed to score a discount and got them for £13.50. I have them on now and they are fabulously comfortable.

Outfit: Plaid Shirt

I picked up this shirt in Primark this week for all of £8. I don’t buy much in Primark clothes wise, but these shirts are so long in the body that they are perfect for a tall girl like me. The sleeves are supposed to roll up (they have a press stud and a little tab to keep them up) but it’s far too cold to do that so I put a sweater over it instead. The shirt also comes in a red-based plaid.

Blue/green plaid shirt – Primark
Jeans – Next (charity shop)
Blue tank (under shirt) – Topshop
Black cashmere sweater – Florence + Fred at Tesco
Tan boots – Faith

Total Est. Cost £90.50

The Importance Of Online Shopping

This week I have been chasing all over the place trying to get hold of two pairs of boots – one from Primark and one from Matalan. They have been out of stock at all my local stores and the sales staff don’t seem to know when more will be delivered. Now if these were any other shop, I would just be able to go on to their website and order what I wanted online. But I can’t do that in this case. Oh no. For Matalan and Primark do not have an online shopping facility. So, a message to both of these shops: It is 2008. Google has been around for 10 years. For goodness sake, to keep your customers happy, GET A TRANSACTIONAL WEBSITE! That is all. Thank you.

Meme

I got tagged for another meme.

The rules are as follows:

1. Link back to the meme creator: Caz

2. Link to the person who tagged you: Missi of Domestic Sophisticate

3. Link back to the originator of the positive SA movement (I have no idea what that means!?): Cheap Thrills

4. List five reasons you love your state!

5. Tag at least five people: I think I’ll opt out of tagging on this one. Tag yourself if you want to complete this meme.


I don’t have a state as I live in the UK, so I’m going to write about my county instead as that’s probably the British equivalent to states. I live in Yorkshire, West Yorkshire to be precise. And I love it because:

1. The scenery – Yorkshire has arguably some of the best scenery in the country. We have the Yorkshire Dales, we have the North Yorkshire coastline and we have Dalby Forest.

2. Leeds – Leeds is a fantastic city. Because it is ‘up north’ it escaped much of the bomb damage during World War 2 that blighted southern cities such as London and Bristol. Consequently Leeds still has many of its old beautiful buildings and minimal 1960s hideousness.

3. The accent – I love the Yorkshire accent. If you’ve never heard it, search You Tube for a clip of Emmerdale Farm (Yorkshire based soap opera) from the 1970s or 1980s and you’ll understand what I mean (it’s no use watching Emmerdale these days, there’s hardly any ‘natives’ in it anymore). In fact, click here and here for the first ever episode from 1972.

4. The food – Sunday dinner would not be complete without Yorkshire Pudding for a start. And had I not grown up in Yorkshire I might never have eaten chips (the oven variety) with gravy, or baked beans with gravy. (What? It’s tasty. Really. Don’t knock it til you’ve tried it!)

5. The weather. Yes it rains here a lot, but we are in the east, on the east side of the Pennines, so it doesn’t rain here half as much as it does in Manchester or over the Pennines. And for that, we should be thankful.

Review: Fuel For Design

If you’ve ever thought about starting your own t-shirt business then this could be the resource for you. A new e-book by Gino Orlandi has just been ‘published’ and is available at the How to Start A Clothing Line website for just $37.I love that it is an e-book – the concept is green as there is no printing, paper or shipping involved, and you will receive it immediately – great for people with limited patience when it comes to waiting for online purchases to arrive, like me!
It is a guide to starting and marketing your own t-shirt business and contains an online marketing section, a guide to getting more traffic to your t-shirt store, and tips on search engine optimisation – useful information for whatever you are trying to promote.
It is a step by step guide with tips on topics such as launching your website, marketing your website, how many t-shirts to print, how to ship them, and reviews of the best online store systems.
The book is suitable for:
Anyone Who Wants to Start Their Own Clothing Line
Anyone Looking to Make a Career Change
Graphic Designers Looking to Earn Extra Income
Clothing Line Owners Looking for the Latest Marketing Tips
Gino also runs a t-shirt blog at Color Overload. This is where you can purchase his own t-shirt designs and participate in the t-shirt forum. He has gleaned all the experience and knowledge contained in the e-book from his own research whilst setting up his online t-shirt sales and now you can benefit from that first-hand knowledge. So if you are looking to start a clothing line, look no further than this e-book.

Playing Dress Up

I have been meaning to put a belt with this cape for ages to see whether a) it looked any good and b) I could still move my arms. The answer to b) is yes I can, and I think it looks OK too. What do you think?

EDIT: OK, please ignore the boots! It's the belt on the cape we are focussing on here. I promise not to wear it out with the boots.

Outfit: Green & Grey

I got these jeans at Primark yesterday. They are labelled skinny fit and boy, are they skinny. But that makes them perfect for wearing inside boots.

Pale green long sleeve t – Long Tall Sally
Grey sweater – Ethel Austin
Grey jeans – Primark
Green suede boots – River Island
Green/teal scarf – Marks & Spencer
Green & silver bangles – Accessorize

Total Est. Cost £54

Outfit: Don’t You Step On My Blue Suede Shoe-Boots

I had a sudden urge to wear these shoe boots this evening. I’ve not worn them in ages but I wanted blue heels and these fit the bill perfectly. I headed out to my local drama group rehearsal.

Grey silk & cashmere sweater – Zara
White long sleeve t – Long Tall Sally
High waisted jeans – Gap
Blue suede shoe boots – New Look
Blue silk scarf – Tesco
Silver belt – Primark
Blue & silver bangles – Oxfam

Total Est. Cost £108.50

Outfit: Blue & Grey

For some reason I am really feeling skinny jeans tucked into boots at the moment. Especially flat boots.

Grey silk and cashmere sweater – Zara
White long sleeve t – Long Tall Sally
Skinny jeans – Gap
Blue boots – Priceless Shoes
Blue silk scarf – Tesco
Silver belt – Primark
Blue & silver bangles – Oxfam

Total Est. Cost £95.50

Outfit: Chilling At Home

When I say chilling, I mean literally, ‘chilling’ – until the heating kicks in it’s freezing! Hence the layers. And the hat.

Grey long cardi – Firetrap (charity shop)
Grey polo neck sweater – Long Tall Sally
Skinny jeans – Gap
Grey hat – Long Tall Sally
Pink slipper boots – Tesco

Total Est. Cost £63

This Week I Will Be Mostly…

…wearing hats
…reading the December issues of my favourite magazines
…watching Life on Mars season 1
…listening to Radio 2
…eating jacket potatoes
…shopping for boots in Primark

Note to Self…

…if it’s cold and dank outside and you really must wear a dress, knee high boots are the way to go, not ankle ones.

Outfit: Dull Tuesday

It’s dull and grey outside today so coloured tights were definitely a necessity to brighten things up a little. One of my cheapest outfits ever today I think!

Green dress – Florence + Fred at Tesco (charity shop)
Green tights – New Look
Grey tank – Cherokee at Tesco
Grey boots – Ethel Austin
Teal necklace – Scope

Total Est. Cost £17

Outfit: Monday Evening

Choir practice again. And it seems they lulled us into a false sense of security last week with the warmth. It was cold again tonight. I wanted to keep the mix of black and navy going so I added my dark blue velvet waistcoat over the sweater and jeans combo.

Black polo neck sweater – Long Tall Sally
Skinny jeans – Gap
Blue velvet waistcoat – Primark
Blue boots – Priceless Shoes

Total Est. Cost £63

Outfit: Black & Navy

I used to think that this was a no go combination, much like black and brown used to be. However, black and navy can look fabulous together, so long as you look like you intended to do it. So navy shoes with a black suit is still a no no, but worn like this I think it works well.

Navy dress – Next
Black polo neck sweater – Long Tall Sally
Black tights – Silkies
Black boots – New Look (eBay)

Total Est. Cost £60

Outfit: Sunday

We headed to my sister’s house today for lunch in a belated celebration of my mum’s birthday.

Pink top – Long Tall Sally (eBay)
Turquoise cami – Dorothy Perkins Tall
Jeans – Long Tall Sally
Turquoise boots – Splash (eBay)
Silver scarf – gift
Turquoise & silver bangles – Oxfam

Total Est. Cost £51.50

Outfit: Saturday Night

Some friends of ours are moving to Australia next week and last night was their leaving/engagement party.

Teal shrug – Ann Taylor Loft (charity shop)
Black & silver cami – New Look Tall
Skinny jeans – Topshop Tall
Teal boots – Faith
Teal/green scarf – Marks & Spencer
Teal necklace – Scope

Total Est. Cost £67

Outfit: Saturday

I headed into the city to meet my sister so I really put my new boots to the test walking around all day. I am pleased to report that they are supremely comfortable and my feet stayed cosy but not too hot.

Black sweater dress – New Look Tall (charity shop)
White long sleeve t – Tall Girls
Skinny jeans – Gap
Brown/beige belt – vintage
Chestnut boots – EMU Australia (On Shoes)Leopard print scarf – Ethel Austin

Total Est. Cost £29