Note to Self...

...always bring a cardi to work with you. Air conditioning? It's cold.

Outfit: Tuesday

The week wouldn’t be complete without an airing of the purple dress, would it? This outfit is pinched straight from the Lookbook blog – Christina Ricci’s purple dress outfit. It also made me think of Jane from Work That Wardrobe as she often wears an Obi belt over a dress. It’s the perfect look for what promises to be another hot summer’s day.

Purple dress – Dorothy Perkins (eBay)
Black Obi belt – ASOS
Beige shoes – Faith
Purple bracelet – Esme-Grace (gifted)
Purple bangles – Diamonds & Pearls
Silver bangles – Scope
Whitby Jet cross – gifted
Sunglasses - free with Tatler magazine

Total Est. Cost £39

This Week I Will Be Mostly…

…wearing summer clothes to combat the alledged heatwave
…reading ‘The Cupid Effect’ by Dorothy Koomson. She is one of my favourite authors as all her books are set in Leeds.
…watching the new series of Top Gear on iPlayer – missed it again due to BBQing fun last night
…listening to Michael Jackson. His music is (understandably) everywhere at the moment which has inspired me to dig out the 3 albums I own (Bad, Thriller, No1s) and play them. I had forgotten how great his music is. I was feeling kind of weird on Friday afternoon watching his videos and knowing he was gone, so it seemed like the only thing to do was to turn up ‘Smooth Criminal’ and dance around the house.
…eating things out of the freezer
…shopping for nothing (unless I see a real bargain on eBay)

Outfit: Stripey Monday

According to the weather report, the UK is about to have a heatwave descend upon it for the week. I see no signs of that so far as this morning dawned dull and drizzly – so much so that I debated fake tanning my legs. In the end I decided to go forward in faith, and am currently awaiting the sun putting in an appearance.

Black & cream stripe dress – charity shop
Black cardi – New Look
Turquoise shoes – New Look (charity shop)
Turquoise bangle – Dorothy Perkins
Silver bangles – Scope
Silver belt – Primark

Total Est. Cost £28

Outfit: Sunday & Weekend Recap

Friday night we were going to stay in but the young man’s parents came over and we ended up going for a drink with them to the local cricket club. We were only going to stay for an hour but we got chatting to some other people in there and by the time we left it was midnight. I wore a black top, boyfit jeans and leopard print flats.

Saturday I had a concert with my choir. The afternoon was spent rehearsing (and missing all the lovely sunshine). I wore a purple tank, cuffed dark skinny jeans and the same turquoise peep toes I have on today (Monday). The concert was Saturday night and meant the choir uniform – a shapeless blue blouse and full length black skirt had to be worn. I added black peeptoe shoes to it as it was far too hot for tights.

Yesterday – Sunday – we slept late, then I went to do the Tesco shop. The young man & his mate went off on a bike ride in the afternoon (though I think they did more sitting outside a pub drinking than they did cycling), then they returned home and we had a BBQ. I walked up to the retail park to get a few bits in Boots, then sat in the garden with a book enjoying the sun.

Blue cardi – Ethel Austin
Blue top – Primark
Jeans – New Look
Silver flats – Priceless Shoes
Blue necklace – Dorothy Perkins
Blue beads – gifted
Blue & turquoise bangles – Oxfam
Blue chunky bangle – Diamonds & Pearls

Total Est. Cost £43

Outfit: Turned Up

This outfit went through several incarnations in my head before I settled on what you see here. I was watching fashion videos on the Guardian website and the journalist presenting them was talking about slogan tees and she put a jacket with rolled up sleeves over it. I was initially going to wear a white tee with black printing but decided the outfit needed a bit of colour so switched to pink.

This is a great way of using your suit jacket for a more casual look – especially if the lining is an interesting colour or pattern. My brown suit jacket has a fabulous lilac lining so I’ll have to try out wearing that one with the sleeves turned up at some point.

I laid out two options for jeans, in case the weather turned inclement – the BBC were unable to decide yesterday whether it would be wet here, forecasting drizzle for today before switching to sun this morning. As the sun is now peeking out I’m pleased they were wrong about the drizzle.

After not wearing these shoes very much in the past, I suddenly have a new found love for them this week so expect to see more of them from now on.

I am heading to Dunnes with a friend at dinner time and I will try not to buy any more shoes.

Black jacket – Long Tall Sally
Pink Minnie Mouse t – George at ASDA
Jeans – Gap
Pink shoes – Nine West (Debenhams)
Pink beads – Dorothy Perkins
Pink bangles (both arms) – gifted
Silver bangles – Scope
Sunglasses (there’s optimism for you) – free with Tatler magazine

Total Est. Cost £83

Note to Self...

...start carrying bronzer in your make up bag for fixing instant tan malfunctions.

Outfit: Thursday

More sunshine is forecast for today but again it has started out cloudy so I added a pale denim jacket over this outfit first thing to keep off the chill.

Plaid shirt – Primark
Blue tank – Topshop
Grey city shorts – Dorothy Perkins
Blue patent shoes – New Look
Blue ring & necklace – Dorothy Perkins
Blue chunky bangle – Diamonds & Pearls
Blue & turquoise metal bangles – Oxfam
White sunglasses – ASOS

Total Est. Cost £63

Outfit: Wednesday Evening

It was the local drama group AGM last night. I managed to get myself voted onto the committee. We had a big discussion about whether or not to play the National Anthem at the beginning of the show (it was voted yes in the end) and that was about the highlight of a fairly dull evening.

Earlier in the evening I could be found wearing shorts and lying in the sun in the back garden reading magazines.

Turquoise tank – Topshop
Jeans – Gap
Pink shoes – Nine West (Debenhams)
Pink beads – Dorothy Perkins
Turquoise bangle – Dorothy Perkins
Pink bangles – gifted
Silver bangles – Scope
Sunglasses – free with Tatler magazine

Total Est. Cost £39

Outfit: Hoping for Sun

Today is forecast to be very warm and sunny. However, at present we have fog and cloud so fingers crossed the weather report will prove correct.

Grey dress – Primark (eBay)
Turquoise tank – Topshop
White jeans – Topshop (eBay)
Turquoise shoes – New Look (charity shop)
Red beads – eBay
Red bangles – Primark
Silver bangles – Scope
Turquoise bangle – Dorothy Perkins

Total Est. Cost £52

Outfit: Date Night

I headed into the city last night to meet the young man on his return from London. We went for drinks and then to a Thai restaurant for a meal. It was a lovely warm evening, perfect to be out and about in the city.

I bought these shoes on the way home from work. I wanted something flat and open to wear, but smarter than regular flip flops. I think these fit the bill pretty well and they are leather all over, including the soles.

Blue top – New Look Tall
Jeans – Gap
Silver flip flops – Next
Blue necklace – Dorothy Perkins
Blue & turquoise bangles – Oxfam
Blue bangle – Diamonds & Pearls
Earrings – Dorothy Perkins

Total Est. Cost £49

Fame At Last!

Shudoo have just released their Summer 2009 handbook and I am in it! It was such an honour to be asked to contribute, and now that I see I am alongside such big names as Queen Michelle and Hillary Alexander, I feel even more proud to be included. You can check it out here.

Outfit: Purple & Teal

I think this could be my favourite dress at the moment. It’s so comfortable to wear and very versatile in what it can be paired with. I have used instant tan on my legs so now I need to avoid the heavy showers that are forecast (that weren’t mentioned when I checked today’s forecast yesterday – gah!). The young man is in London today so this evening I am meeting him from the train and we are going out to eat. We don’t often have a date night in the week so it will be a nice treat tonight.

I tried taking a picture from a different angle this morning but I’m not sure it works so well really.

Teal shrug – Ann Taylor Loft (charity shop)
Purple dress – Dorothy Perkins (eBay)
Teal wedges – Matalan
Teal necklace – Scope
Teal bangles – Accessorize
Teal belt – Claire’s
Purple glitter bangles – Diamonds & Pearls
Purple/pink bangles – gifted

Total Est. Cost £34

This Week I Will Be Mostly…

…wearing more summer things if the weather holds out
…reading ‘Shopaholic Ties The Knot’ by Sophie Kinsella – I am re-reading all 5 Shopaholic books
…watching the new series of Top Gear on iPlayer
…listening to my MP3 selection
…eating chicken with a Portugese BBQ marinade
…shopping for nothing

Outfit: New Dress, New Shoes

I got this dress on eBay the other week for all of £3.09. I had the young man’s mum shorten it for me as I wasn’t happy with the length. I was going to put heels with it but after injuring my foot in Tesco yesterday, I thought I’d put my new purple flats with it instead. I got these Thursday lunchtime last week for all of £8. They have little hearts all over them which I think you can just about make out in the terrible detail shot.

Purple shrug – charity shop (cut off from a top by me)
Grey dress – J by Jasper Conran (eBay)
Purple footless tights – Dorothy Perkins
Purple shoes – Matalan
Purple glitter bangles – Diamonds & Pearls
Purple bangles – gifted
Purple necklace – Scope
Purple belt – Ethel Austin

Total Est. Cost £19

Outfit: Sunny Sunday

So I was right to take a scarf and my coat to the BBQ on Saturday night. It was torrential rain all evening and it was cold! Fortunately my friends had rigged up a tarpaulin over the drive between their house and next door so everyone could keep dry, and they was a covered area at the back of the garage where the BBQing was done so that stayed dry too. We had a great time despite the weather and got home around midnight.

Sunday was Fathers’ Day in the UK (and the US too?). I did some washing and the Tesco shop in the morning, then we headed to see the young man’s parents in the afternoon. My parents and sister & brother-in-law came over for a (much drier!) BBQ in the evening. It was warm and sunny and we had a great time in the garden.

Blue cardi – Ethel Austin
White ‘Leggy Bird’ t – New Look Tall
Jeans – River Island
Turquoise flip flops – Primark
Turquoise belt – H&M
Blue & turquoise bangles – Oxfam
Blue chunky bangle – Diamonds & Pearls
Turquoise earrings – gifted
White sunglasses – ASOS

Total Est. Cost £88

Outfit: Saturday

We went out to run a few errands this morning, then stopped off at a local pub for lunch. This afternoon we are headed to the coast to my friend’s house as it is her 30th party this evening. It’s sunny but windy out at the moment. She’s having a BBQ in her garden so I feel I will be adding a cardi, scarf and possibly a coat to today’s ensemble.

Teal top – H&M
Jeans – River Island
Silver flats – Priceless Shoes
Pink bangles – gifted
Teal bangles – Accessorize
Pink beads – Dorothy Perkins

Total Est. Cost £64

Outfit: Grey Friday

I got this dress on eBay (BNWT) a couple of weeks back. I will wear it with leggings for a more casual look but I thought jeans were more appropriate for work. I did have a slight mishap with the dress when I got it. There was a modesty cami sewn in (well, half a modesty cami – it was only on the front of the dress) but as the fabric is not very thick it was neither use nor ornament as you need a proper top under it to hide your bra at the back. So I set about chopping out the built in cami and managed to cut throught the grey part as well. Fortunately it is fairly well hidden under the arm, so once I’d done an emergency repair job it’s not really very noticeable.

Grey cardi – New Look Tall
Grey bubble hem dress – Primark (eBay)
Blue cami – Topshop
Skinny jeans – Topshop Tall
Blue patent shoes – New Look
Blue necklace & ring – Dorothy Perkins
Blue bangle – Diamonds & Pearls
Blue & silver bangles – Oxfam

Total Est. Cost £55

Outfit: Suited & Booted

What a busy morning! I’m only just getting to posting now. I went for a smarter look today as I had a meeting this morning, but I ended up not wearing the jacket in the office as it is too warm.

Black trouser suit – Long Tall Sally
Purple shrug – charity shop (cut off from a top by me)
Purple tank – New Look Tall
Purple booties – Priceless Shoes
Purple/pink/silver bangles – gifted
Purple necklace – Scope

Total Est. Cost £106

Review: Mary Queen of Charity Shops

Over the last 5 months, Mary Portas has set out to change the way charity shops operate – namely to improve the quality of donations the shops receive in order to attract more customers and make more money each week for the charities. With a slogan of Donate: Don’t Dump, she went into large businesses (Google, EMAP, British Gas) to ask staff there to donate one or two quality items from their wardrobes that they no longer wear. And it worked. Many of the items she received were fabulous and far better quality than much of the stuff that can be picked up in shops such as Primark for a similar price.

There is nothing wrong with wearing secondhand clothing, you only have to look at anyone of the blogs listed in my style bar and I guarantee you that one or more item listed in that week’s outfit will be thrifted. Most vintage clothing is secondhand and fashionistas wouldn’t think twice about wearing that.

As we all know (because Gok has been telling us so for the past 8 weeks), most women wear just 20% of their wardrobe 80% of the time and so my challenge to you is to go home this evening and find a couple of items to donate to your local charity shop. And whilst you’re in there, have a browse around to see what other style mavens such as yourself have donated – you never know what you might find lurking on those rails!

Outfit: Purple Wednesday

I am taking a bit of inspiration from the final outfit Mary Portas had on in Mary Queen of Charity Shops last night with the purple dress and the white top. She also had on fabulous green boots and if it was still winter I could have worn mine. I’ll have to store that one away for the autumn.

Purple dress – Dorothy Perkins (eBay)
White top – Tall Girls
Black leggings – New Look Tall
Yellow wedges – Priceless Shoes
Green & yellow scarf – market stall
Purple glitter bangles – Diamonds & Pearls
Purple stretch bracelet – Esme-Grace (gifted)
Purple heart necklace – gifted
Silver cross necklace – gifted

Total Est. Cost £32

Duo – Not Just Boots

You may have heard of Duo – the UK company who custom make boots to accommodate the measurement of your calf as well as your shoe size. But did you know that they also make cute shoes? Available in UK sizes 2-10 and in a variety of width fittings, you are sure to find something suitable.

Instant Tan Makeup – The Water Test

Never let it be said that I don’t go the extra mile for my readers. Candycane asked what happens to the Instant Tan Makeup I reviewed the other day when (as so often happens in this country) you are caught in a rainstorm. England’s lands are green and pleasant for a reason you know – it’s all that rain! She wanted to know does it streak when rained on. So, in the name of research, I could be found yesterday evening with one foot beside the wash basin, splashing my leg with water to see what happened. The answer is no, it doesn’t streak or run. What is does do is wash off (which, in fairness, is exactly what it said it would do on the tube: washes off with soap and water) and I was left with white patches on my leg.

As I would no normally go bare legged on a day when rain is forecast this is not a problem for me. However, if you were travelling to an event in torrential rain I would suggest covering up with leggings until you are safely inside and then removing them to avoid wash off.

It is marketed as ‘makeup’ after all and the fact that it washes off makes it really easy to remove and means you can easily correct any mistakes – just wash them off!

£10 off Steve Madden Shoes at Amazon

Save £10 when you spend £60 or more on Steve Madden shoes at Amazon. Use the code SHOESMAD.

Outfit: Short Tuesday

I took these shorts up an inch or so a couple of weeks back. I felt they hit my leg at an odd place and I think they look a whole lot better now. It’s funny actually – when I started working at my current job my department was all men and me. The manager at the time had a no shorts rule for the lads. The following summer city shorts came into fashion and I started wearing them for work. No one could object to them really, they were smart and no shorter than a skirt would be. However, this meant that some of the lads then started to wear long shorts on very hot days and knew they could get away with it because if I was in shorts, it was only fair they were allowed them too – sexual equality and all.

I loved the blue & red combo so much last night that I decided to stick with it for today.

Blue cardi – Ethel Austin
Grey check shirt – New Look Tall
Red cami – New Look
Grey city shorts – Next
Red wedges – New Look (charity shop)
Red belt – mall market stall
Blue bangle – Diamonds & Pearls
Red & cream bangles – gifted
Blue necklace – Dorothy Perkins
White sunglasses - ASOS

Total Est. Cost £73

Outfit: Travelling Scarf Part 2

Firstly: I love these jeans! They are the second of my new pairs. Expect to see them a lot in the coming days and weeks.
Second: here’s my casual outfit incorporating the travelling scarf. It was choir practice last night as it always is on a Monday so the scarf helped keep me warm when the church got a little cool towards the end of the evening.
Third: Who says cheap tops don’t last? I must have had this red cami for around 9 years now. I wash it inside out so while the inside has faded, the right side has kept its colour pretty well and it hasn’t shrunk or stretched. I think I paid about £5 for it in New Look.

Blue cardi – Ethel Austin
Red cami – New Look
Jeans – River Island
Yellow shoes – Cherokee at Tesco
Blue glitter belt – H&M
Scarf – Kimberly’s Travelling Scarf

Total Est. Cost £58

This Week I Will Be Mostly…

…wearing my new River Island jeans
…reading the June issue of In Style magazine
…watching the Mary Queen of Charity Shops
…listening to my co-workers moaning about moving desks
…eating whatever’s in the fridge
…shopping for nothing

Review: Boots Golden Shimmer Instant Tan Makeup

It’s mid-June and I decided it was finally time to bare my legs, despite the threat of rain later on today. All girls know that bare legs require fake tan of some kind or another – especially when your legs are as white as mine are (seriously, you would be reading this blog in sunglasses if you saw the true colour of my legs). Like many men, the young man does not like the smell of fake tan. And honestly? Neither do I really.

Amber reviewed Boots Golden Shimmer Instant Tan Makeup on Hey, Dollface! last year and was really positive about it so I thought I’d give it a go myself. And I’m pretty impressed. I applied it last night after my bath and there was no smell at all. It dried really quickly and once dry, it did not transfer onto anything else (I sat on my white dressing gown to protect the sofa, just in case, but there was no rub off). When I woke up this morning my legs felt soft, as if I’d applied copious amouts of moisturiser the previous evening.

The colour is good but as Amber said, it is fairly subtle and tends to just take the edge off the whiteness of my legs rather than be totally golden brown. But for everyday use that is exactly what I am looking for to avoid blinding people with the glare from my legs. I used the lotion fairly sparingly as it was my first time but would not be afraid to slap some more on next time. The tube says that for a darker colour you can wait for it to dry and then apply some more. Again, this is something I might try next time, although Amber said it didn’t make a lot of difference when she did this.

I used the Matte version of this product but I think it is also available with a shimmer if you wanted something extra for evening wear.

I would definitely recommend this as an alternative to regular fake tans – there is no fear of mistakes as it simply washes off with soap and water.

Boots Golden Shimmer Instant Tan Makeup is £2.95 and is available at Boots stores.

Outfit: Travelling Scarf

The fabulous Kimberly of Fab Finds Under $50 started off the Sisterhood of the Travelling Scarf a few months back and it has been making its way around the US and now it has travelled over to the UK. Boutique Girl had it first and now it’s my turn. The scarf is very colourful – pink, green, yellow & red so I thought it best to pair it with simple black and white and let the scarf do the talking. I have a more casual, colourful outfit planned for this evening so stay tuned to see the scarf rocked in another way.

Black wrap dress – Luxuriously Tall
White cami – Topshop
Red shoes – Next
Belt –Travelling scarf
Whitby Jet cross – gifted

Total Est. Cost £36

New Jeans

I may have accidentally bought another pair of jeans today. Also from River Island. I have a weakness for the fabulous detailing they put on their denim. Check out the ones I got today:

Outfit: White as a Neutral

I am using white as the base colour for my outfit today. Yes my bra straps are showing. And yes, I’m fine with that. Many fashion writers declare this a big no-no, but I would far rather see a well supported chest and a little bit of pretty bra strap peeping out of a tank top or cami, rather than saggy boobs that come from wearing a strapless bra.

The shoes are one of the pairs I bought for the show – I figured I may as well wear them since I have them.

It’s warm & sunny (on & off) again today. I got up late so gave church a miss. The young man went off to play out on his trials bike whilst I popped to Boots for some SPF lip balm and then dropped in on his parents to leave a dress with his mum to shorten for me.

This afternoon we are just chilling – outside when the sun is not hiding behind the clouds, and the plan is to BBQ again this evening if it stays nice.

White cardi – Long Tall Sally (eBay)
Blue tank – Topshop
Jeans – New Look
White flats – Priceless Shoes
Blue bangle – Diamonds & Pearls
Red bangles – Primark
Red beads – eBay
White sunglasses – ASOS

Total Est. Cost £47

New Jeans

These are the jeans I got in River Island today. They are not too dark a denim and have some slight distressing on the front. Perfect for summer!

Outfit: Saturday

I went into the city to meet up with my sister today. We had coffee & cake at Harvey Nichols, did some shopping, visited the M&S 150th anniversary exhibition at the university and generally had a good time.

I bought some jeans in River Island, some footless tights in New Look and some leggings at Great Clothes (who I am disappointed to learn will no longer be stocking womenswear).

It was warm and sunny today so I went to Morrison’s on the way home and got some things for a BBQ which the young man and I then enjoyed.

Grey cardi – New Look Tall
White tank – Topshop
Crop jeans – New Look
Blue flats – Ethel Austin
Blue necklace & ring – Dorothy Perkins
Silver earrings – Dorothy Perkins
White sunglasses – ASOS
Tan leather bag - Pier Carlo D'Alessio (charity shop)

Total Est. Cost £53

Review: Esme-Grace Jewellery (& 10% Discount!)

My friend Kate has recently set up a jewellery line called Esme-Grace. As part of her marketing she asked whether she could send me something in return for a review on my blog. I, of course, said yes. I chose the Purple Acrylic Bracelet and as you can see from my earlier post, it looked fab with what I wore today.

The whole range is gorgeous and there are many pieces to choose from, all of which would enhance any outfit. From matching necklace and earring sets, to delicate chain bracelets and chunky necklaces, Esme-Grace has it all.


Prices start from just £5 and there is free shipping on orders over £50. So if you’re looking for something unusual for that birthday gift, or even a little treat for yourself, Esme-Grace may have just the thing you’re looking for.

What’s more, Kate has kindly offered all my readers a 10% discount: just enter the code SHOEGAL at the checkout.

Outfit: Purple & White

Sometimes I have an outfit in my head for a couple of days before I get to wearing it. Sometimes I have no idea save for one item. Yesterday I had got as far as the cropped jeans in planning for today. When I got home yesterday afternoon there was a package for me containing this lovely purple bracelet, sent to me by my friend Kate who has a jewellery line called Esme-Grace. That decided it for me – purple it was so that I could wear my new bracelet.

White cardi – Long Tall Sally (eBay)
Purple tank – New Look Tall
Crop jeans – New Look
Grey tweed shoes – Matalan
Purple bracelet – Esme-Grace (gifted)
Purple hearts necklace – gifted
Silver cross necklace – gifted

Total Est. Cost £35

Outfit: Nautical Thursday

Navy is not a colour I wear very often, but sometimes I’m just in the mood for a neutral that’s a little bit different. I started out with red tights with this, but switched to the navy as footless just looks so much more summery than full tights, and it’s not really that cold out today. The sun is even trying to come out.

Navy & cream stripe top – New Look Tall (eBay)
Navy dress – Next
Navy footless tights – Dorothy Perkins
Navy shoes – Magrit (outlet mall)
Red belt – mall market stall
Red & cream bangles – gifted
Red beads – eBay
Cream earrings – gifted

Total Est. Cost £67

Outfit: Wednesday Evening

This was also the outfit I changed into on Tuesday evening in an effort to put the leopard print cardi with jeans. I didn’t photograph it then, and decided it would be a good one for going to a singing rehearsal in last night. I got two compliments on the cardi and was asked whether the jeans were new.

Leopard print cardi – Primark (eBay)
Black tank – Cherokee at Tesco
Jeans – Gap
Beige shoes – Faith
Cream bead necklace – New Look
Whitby jet cross – gifted
Purple bangles – Diamonds & Pearls

Total Est. Cost £46

Non-Blurry Photo!

Here are a few shots of the new purple dress, minus the blurring!

Review: Soap & Glory Hair Supply

Is it just me or does everyone else get the Air Supply song ‘Making Love Out of Nothing At All’ in their head when they hear the name of this product? Just me? Oh, OK. Moving on then…

I received a Soap & Glory gift set for my birthday from my little sister and last night I got around to trying out the tube of Hair Supply that was included with it. I had high hope for this deep conditioning treatment as all the Soap & Glory products I have tried previously have been fabulous. I followed the directions to use a handful of the product and leave it in for 3-4 minutes for a once a week treatment. It promised to leave my hair soft and silky in return.

Well, I’m not sure whether I used too much of it, or left it on too long or what, but when I came to blowdry my hair it just felt a bit limp, and as if I hadn’t washed it at all. Perhaps I’ll try it again and use less, for a shorter amount of time, but my initial view is that I’m not very impressed with it.

Buy the Soap & Glory range at Boots.

Review: Birkenstocks

I was in Whitby the other week and saw a girl walking along the jetty in a pair of Birkenstock sandals. She looked so cool and the shoes looked so comfy that I started hankering after a pair of Birkenstocks. So it was at just the right time that I was offered a pair by Fitness Footwear to review. I have always been a fan of flip flops so I chose the Birkenstock Gizeh style because it has a toe-post and looked like it would be the best type for me to wear. The alternative is the Birkenstock Madrid style, which doesn’t have a toe post.

The footbed is made of leather and is shaped to provide arch support and hold your foot in the shoe. There is a ridge under the toes which I thought might be uncomfortable but isn’t at all. The strap is man made but has a soft lining on the underside, for maximum comfort. The strap has a buckle and is adjustable to ensure a good fit. They are great to walk in and I can see myself getting plenty of use out of them this summer.

Birkenstocks are available at Fitness Footwear in various styles and colours, for men and women, for £39.45. As with everything at Fitness Footwear, delivery is free and the dispatch time is fast.

Sketchers Shape Ups

Skechers Shape Ups are new trainers that are going to be hitting the UK in a huge way this summer. They are on a similar premise to Fit Flops in that they tone your legs and bum whilst walking, but as they are a full shoe, they are perhaps more appropriate if we get another ‘summer’ like the ones we’ve had for the past two years.

Shape Ups are said to include the following benefits:
• Improved posture
• Improved blood circulation
• Firms buttock muscles
• Strengthens back muscles
• Tightens abdominal muscles
• Reduces cellulite
• Tones muscles


Shape Ups launch on 16th June at Fitness Footwear and will cost £89.95 (with free delivery as always at Fitness Footwear). I am lucky enough to have been offered a pair to try so will post a full review here once I have tested them out. Meanwhile, if you want to shape up for summer you can pre-order at Fitness Footwear.

20% Off Everything At Dorothy Perkins

I think this offer is online only, and it’s from now until Friday. Click here to shop!

Outfit: DP & eBay Girl

I got this dress on eBay, BNWT, for £4.99. It arrived yesterday. It had ties on the side which I cut off as they were quite heavy due to the weight of the fabric, and wouldn’t have hung properly. I find ties like that very restrictive when it comes to adding cardis over the top, or belts. They don’t really serve a purpose, especially when the dress is fitted like this one is, and I don’t really understand why they appear on so many dresses. What I do like about it though is that it has a piece of fabric sewn in to the v at the front, negating the need for a modesty cami.

I usually wear this cardi as a shrug, tied up at the front. Today though I am taking yet more inspiration from Boutique Girl who has a cardi this sort of shape and wears it belted like this.

Excuse the blurry photos; I must have had the shakes or something this morning! I’ll try to remember to take a better picture when I get home and replace the blurred one.

Cream cardi – Long Tall Sally (eBay)
Purple dress – Dorothy Perkins (eBay)
Purple footless tights – Dorothy Perkins
Beige shoes – Faith
Purple necklace – Scope
Cream bead necklace – New Look
Purple bangles – Diamonds & Pearls
Cream bead earrings – gifted

Total Est. Cost £45

Outfit: Blue Dress

I absolutely love the new length of this dress. If I had owned brown leggings I would have used those today but in the spirit of working with what I have, it had to be black. I was inspired by Boutique Girl to get this leopard print cardi and now that I have it, I must try harder to use it.

These shoes have not seen the light of day for a long time but I am remembering how comfy they are now and hope to get much more wear out of them this summer.

Leopard print cardi – Primark (eBay)
Blue dress – charity shop
Black tank – New Look Tall
Black leggings – New Look Tall
Beige & cream shoes – Evans
Blue necklace – Dorothy Perkins
Blue bead bracelet – gifted
Tan Obi belt – ASOS

Total Est. Cost £51



Outfit: Monday Night Choir Practice



I was cold yesterday. It wasn’t actually that cold out, but compared to the tropics we were treated to yesterday, and my propensity for being cold all the time, it felt chilly to me. So I layered up and headed off to choir practice where it wasn’t as chilly as I expected it to be.

Grey cardi – New Look Tall
Purple long sleeve t – Dorothy Perkins Tall
Grey jeans – Primark
Grey boots – Priceless Shoes (gifted)
Purple necklace – gifted
Purple scarf – Diamonds & Pearls

Total Est. Cost £32

This Week I Will Be Mostly…

…wearing dresses
…reading the June issue of She magazine
…watching the last episode of ‘Ashes to Ashes’ – season 3 soon please BBC!
…listening to the tracks on my laptop
…eating strawberry cheesecake
…shopping for nothing further on eBay

Outfit: Back to Work

Well it’s Monday morning and sadly I am back at work after my week off. The forecast for the week looks pretty gloomy so I think the best of the weather is over for now. Let’s hope it returns soon.

I bought these grey leggings on the Friday I finished for my week off. I thought grey was a little more summery than black and they are cropped too making them great for warmer weather. Hopefully it will warm up in a little while and I will not need to keep my cardi on too long.

Grey cardi – New Look Tall
Green & purple dress – Long Tall Sally (eBay)
Grey leggings – Miss Selfridge
Grey faux suede shoes – New Look (charity shop)
Silver necklace – gifted
Silver earrings – Dorothy Perkins
Silver belt – Primark

Total Est. Cost £43

Outfit: Neutral Saturday

All that talk of ugg boots on Friday made me think about wearing my EMU boots yesterday. They are comfy, cosy and the wind off the North Sea can be bitter, even in June. I know it is June, but the sun is not sunny (to misquote Dr Seuss). We were headed to meet up with some friends at the east coast and the forecast was for sun but for it not to be terribly warm. That turned out to be accurate. The lads went to Kettleness to have a fire on the beach (but there turned out to be no drift wood) and the girls and children went to Whitby. We went on the beach and the young man’s goddaughter (she’s 4½) and I built a sandcastle, complete with bridge over the moat.

Black cardi – New Look Tall
Black long sleeve top – Tall Girls (eBay)
Jeans – Gap
Chestnut boots – EMU Australia (On Shoes, gifted)
Cream scarf – gifted
Cream bead necklace – New Look
Whitby jet cross – gifted

Total Est. Cost £46

$30 discount on Ugg-Style Boots

If you are in the market for some Ugg-Style boots, look no further than Whoogaboots! They sell genuine sheepskin ugg boots in a variety of styles and colours and have kindly offered all my readers a voucher for $30 to spend at their store.

Visit their website and enter the code SHOEGALFI into the cart for a $30 discount on any purchase.

Outfit: Friday

Today started out bright and sunny. I got my washing dried on the line and dropped some things in at the charity shop this morning. This afternoon was spent sorting out the spare room ready for our friends coming to stay tomorrow, cleaning the bathroom, and ironing. It’s now raining so I think it will be a quiet night in tonight.

Black Betty Boop t – Dorothy Perkins
Jeans – Topshop Tall
Turquoise flip flops – Primark
Turquoise bangle – Dorothy Perkins
Red & cream bangles – gifted
Red beads – eBay
Sunglasses – Ethel Austin

Total Est. Cost £62

Outfit: Thursday

It’s the young man’s birthday today. At present he’s pottering in the garden and I’m inside, writing this. I’m not sure whether we’re going out anywhere today – I’m waiting for him to make up his mind what he’d like to do.

This is the t shirt I got in ASDA yesterday.

White cardi – Long Tall Sally (eBay)
Pink t – George at ASDA
Jeans – River Island
Blue shoes – Ethel Austin
Blue necklace – Dorothy Perkins
Blue beads – Scope
Pink/purple bangles – gifted

Total Est. Cost £69

Outfit: Wednesday

Today was less hot than it has been the past few days, but once the sun came out it was lovely again. I did the Tesco shopping this morning and went to ASDA this afternoon. I initially went to get a neutral t shirt bra and a shirt for the young man, but ended up with 2 shirts for the young man (which I’ve wrapped up for his birthday tomorrow) a whole load of underwear for me and a new t shirt. Oops.

Grey cardi – New Look Tall
Grey t – Next (charity shop)
Jeans – River Island
Yellow shoes – Cherokee at Tesco
Cream leather belt – gifted
Turquoise bangle – Dorothy Perkins
Whitby jet cross – gifted

Total Est. Cost £65

Outfit: Tuesday on the Beach

Yesterday we headed to Filey for a day out. We had some dinner in a café, then walked on the beach about 2 miles to Hunmanby Gap where we had an ice cream. On the way back we paddled in the sea and boy, was it cold! I love the east coast. I have a friend who lives at Hunmanby and I spent many teenage summers over there. It’s interesting to see how the coast line has changed over the years – the steps we used to use to get down the cliff at Hunmanby Gap are now on the beach and a new path has been built, such is the extent of the coastal erosion.

Pink top – Primark (charity shop)
Jeans – Next (charity shop)
Pink/purple flip flops – Primark
Pink beads – Dorothy Perkins
Pink bangles – gifted
Sunglasses – Boots

Total Est. Cost £27

Outfit: Day Out on Monday

The young man & I headed off to the west coast today. We went to Lytham & St Annes, and then up to Kendal for a walk round. The weather was glorious once again. On the way home we stopped for a meal at a pub just outside Skipton.

Purple tank – New Look Tall
Jeans – Next (charity shop)
Purple & pink flip flops – Primark
Purple necklace – gifted
Bangles – gifted
Silver cross necklace – gifted
Sunglasses – Ethel Austin

Total Est. Cost £14

Outfit: Sunday

I was helping with Junior Church yesterday morning, and the choir were also singing in the service. It promised to be another scorcher so a summer dress was the perfect choice. I lopped this one off the other night and I like it so much better this length.

At dinner time I went home and the young man and I went out for lunch with a couple of friends. I changed into the jeans & tee outfit as it was indeed hot in the sun. We spent the afternoon sat in a pub beer garden.

There was another service at church in the evening at which the choir was singing so I changed back into the blue dress, fake tanned my legs as I couldn’t face putting tights on again, and headed off.

Blue dress (shortened) – Wallis (charity shop)
White cami – Topshop
Blue patent shoes – New Look
Black cross – gifted
Silver belt – Primark

Total Est. Cost £19


White 'Leggy Bird' T - New Look Tall
Cropped jeans - New Look
Flip flops - Primark
Sunglasses - Ethel Austin

Total Est. Cost £34

Holiday!

The young man and I have taken this week off work. We are headed off for the day today to enjoy the sunshine so I will do a catch up post for today and yesterday later on.