Outfit: Defying the Weather

Despite it being a bit chilly out this morning I am in a definant mood and refuse to believe winter is back. It will be April tomorrow. It’s SPRING. (Yes, I know some of you still have snow on the ground, humour me, OK?)

So I put on my trench coat (which will be great if we get the rain that is forecast) and fabulous shoes (erm…not quite so great in the aforementioned rain) and hoped for the best.

In other news, I am bored with my hair. I am not going to cut it (other than regular trims), I am still growing it long. I think I just need to find a new way to wear it for a while so I will experiment with up-dos and things.

Pink top – H&M
Black waistcoat – Next Tall
Black trousers – Long Tall Sally
Leopard print shoes – Betsey Johnson (Fashion Stage) (gifted)
Whitby Jet cross – gifted

Total Est. Cost £61

Bonus Post: Ruby Shoesday

Remember how I said the biggest challenge of Ruby Shoesday would be remembering to do it? Well I went and proved myself right and completely forgot about it until I saw Shoeperwoman’s post appear on her Twitter feed this afternoon.

So this means you get a bonus post of a casual outfit I would not normally post. This is the typical thing I will change into when I have a night in. I don’t wear these jeans out anymore as they have completely worn through on the thighs. But they are so soft and comfy that I wear them around the house all the time. And a cosy fleece hoodie is just the thing to go with them for night on the sofa, blogging and watching TV.

Grey fleece hoodie – Ascension Online (gifted)
Red cami – New Look
Jeans – Gap
Red flats – Matalan
Red beads – eBay

Total Est. Cost £59

Outfit: Winter, Spring, Who Knows?

I thought I had worn a polo neck sweater for the last time this year, but I saw my friend wearing one yesterday and it looked so cosy. With the forecast promising highs of just 9˚C and rain for today, I thought why not? I tried to keep things a bit ‘spring’ with the stripes, but I opted to wear my winter coat (which I also hoped I had seen the last of this year) rather than my trench for warmth.

I am feeling much better today, and have another quiet night in tonight. I’m hoping to catch up with Glee as I am behind (again) in watching it.

Black polo neck sweater – New Look Tall
Black & cream dress – charity shop
Black tights – M&Co
Purple booties – Priceless Shoes
Purple belt – Ethel Austin
Purple hearts necklace – gifted
Silver bling ring – River Island
Cream & silver earrings – gifted

Total Est. Cost £37

This Week I Will Be Mostly…

…wearing boots in the rain
…reading Rules by Jane Beaton
…watching Flying Doctors, Season 7
…listening to Cher
…eating drinking Lemsips with honey
…shopping for nothing

Outfit: Dark Monday

I have been forced back indoors for my morning photos for the time being – damn you Daylight Savings! Rain is forecast for today so patent boots were definitely the way to go. And there is talk of snow for mid-week so perhaps winter hasn’t quite left us after all.

I am still suffering with my cold so may give the gym a miss tonight. If I’m struggling to breathe I don’t think an exercise class would really be the best idea. There is no choir practice tonight so I could be looking at a quiet night in.

Grey jacket – Next Tall
Black sweater – Long Tall Sally
Teal skirt – H&M
Teal tights – Accessorize
Black patent boots – Barratts
Teal heart necklace – Scope
Earrings – shop at the seaside

Total Est. Cost £101

Outfit: Church and Show Rehearsal

It is Palm Sunday today and I was teaching Sunday school this morning. This afternoon we had a show rehearsal which of course meant it was a lovely sunny day. It was blowing a gale out this morning so I opted to take my pictures inside. However, it was so sunny when I got home at tea time that despite it still blowing a gale, I couldn’t resist taking a few more shots outside.

The trench coat is new – it arrived from Next yesterday. I have wanted a trench coat for a while but being so tall the choice is limited. This was the only one I could find in tall in the colour I wanted. As it was already sold out in several sizes I snapped it up quickly rather than wait for the sales and risk missing out altogether.

I am fighting a cold that the young man kindly passed on to me, so have been gradually flagging throughout the day. I will be heading to bed with a Lemsip shortly.

Trench coat – Next Tall
Black cardi – New Look Tall
Teal top – Long Tall Sally
Jeans – Next
Silver flats – Priceless Shoes
Sunglasses – Ethel Austin
Silver cross necklace – gifted

Total Est. Cost £117

Outfit: Saturday Rehearsal

My choir was giving a concert yesterday evening and we had a rehearsal in the afternoon. I knew I would be sitting right by a radiator so dressed in layers, in case I got too warm (unlikely if you know me!) or in case the heating wasn’t on.

Blue jacket – H&M
Plaid shirt – Primark
Blue tank – Topshop
Jeans – River Island
Blue patent shoes – New Look
Whitby jet cross – gifted

Total Est. Cost £89

Stop! Police!

Remember I said earlier I may have some exciting news for you later on? Well if you follow me on Twitter you may have seen that I have joined the staff of the Fashion Police blog, along with Caroline and Andrea. I see the Fashion Police as one of the major British blogs so it is an absolute honour to be writing for them officially. I will be writing a couple of posts a week over there and I was very excited to see my first one go up today. You can view it here.

Reveiw: Maybelline Mascara Falsies

I seem to have developed an expensive taste in make up recently (Estée Lauder, Clinique...) so when Superdrug asked me to try out the new Maybelline Mascara Falsies, I was keen to see whether I could like a high street brand again. The tube is a can’t-miss-it bright pink colour and is wide in diameter – presumably to reinforce the message that this will create huge lashes as much as to house the curved brush.

The brush is curved to spread out the lashes and coat each one evenly. Maybelline say that it gives you “3 x more visible lashes, while our Pro_Keratin filter formula fills in every gap. False lash fab-guaranteed.” Having never worn false lashes myself, I can’t really comment on this claim, however, I would imagine that false lashes give a bit more of a dramatic effect than this mascara does. Having said that though, it certainly coats well and fans out your lashes giving them their full effect.

I would probably buy this product as a cheaper alternative to the more expensive brand I am currently using. It retails for £7.99 usually, but Superdrug are currently offering £2 off, making it £5.99.

Review: Merrell Waterpro Pandi Sandals

When Fitness Footwear asked me to test out a pair of their women’s sandals, I thought that I wasn’t really a walking sandals type of girl. But then I spotted the Merrell Waterpro Pandi Mary Jane style-trainer type shoes in a lovely grey and purple, and I decided I could definitely wear those. Look, they even have tiny flowers painted on them.

They are designed with a mesh top so that any water runs straight out of them. I think they will be useful as beach sandals come the summer too, as any sand will just fall out once you leave the beach.

They have an air cushioned sole and are very comfortable, and the old-school hook and look closure makes them easy to put on and take off – no faffing with tangled laces!

The Merrell Waterpro Pandi sandals are available for £58.45, and as with everything at Fitness Footwear, UK shipping is free.

Outfit: Black & Brown

In my sore throat induced fuzzy state last nightI laid out my flat tan boots to wear today. However, in the interest of not wearing the same boots the entire time, and as I am feeling much better this morning, I changed my mind and went for brown heels instead.

I am pleased it is Friday. The sun is shining (for the moment) and I may have some exciting news later on.

Black sweater – Long Tall Sally
Jeans – Topshop Tall
Brown shoes – New Look (eBay)
Brown & silver scarf – mall market stall
Brown wood earrings – Dorothy Perkins
Silver thumb ring – Claire’s
Leopard print belt – Dorothy Perkins

Total Est. Cost £67

Ruby Shoesday

Caroline over at Secondhand Shopper has set the blogosphere a challenge: wear red shoes on a Tuesday and see how many times you can remix them.

Now for some of us, the remixing part will take considerably longer than for others if we are to wear all our red footwear. I have 3 pairs of boots and 4 pairs of shoe which is, ahem, quite a lot. But a girl has to have options and I think I have all the options covered here – boots, shoes, sandals, flats, heels, wedges.

If you want to play there is a flickr group you can join to where you can upload your photos. If you don’t have any red shoes you are allowed to pick another colour and use that instead.

I have my shoes and boots so I’m all set – the biggest challenge for me will be actually remembering to do it!

Outfit: I’ve Found My Red Dress and I’m Gonna Put It On

I thought I ought to get a bit more wear out of my long sleeve dresses before it (hopefully) gets too warm to wear them. I picked my red dress today and immediately got ‘Sin Wagon’ by the Dixie Chicks in my head.

This is another pair of Shiny Fashion Forum-era shoes. I got them about 3 years ago I think, and possibly some of the other former forumites have them too. They were a bargain at just £14.

Red dress – Luxuriously Tall
White tank – Topshop
Black tights – Silkies
Black patent belt – Primark
Black patent shoes – Matalan
Leopard print scarf – Diamonds & Pearls

Total Est. Cost £54

Outfit: Dull Wednesday

This morning dawned grey & dank, forcing me back inside for my pictures. Mind you, the clocks go forward at the weekend so it will probably be dark out again in the mornings next week anyway.

I am back in heels today! Suede boots may not be the most practical option when rain is forecast, but as I am not planning on venturing further than my car (which is parked right outside the front door) I think I will be OK.

I love these booties and should wear them more often really. They were new about 3 or 4 years ago and came in blue, black and I think grey. A few of us who used to frequent the Shiny Fashion Forums all had a pair (or two pairs). I just went with the blue as it is my colour.

Black sweater – Long Tall Sally
Denim skirt (cut off from a dress) – Miss Selfridge
Black tights – M&Co
Blue suede booties – New Look
Silver diamante necklace – gifted
Silver hoops – gifted
Silver bling ring – River Island
Leopard print scarf – Diamonds & Pearls

Total Est. Cost £108

Outfit: Tuesday

I have more errands to run today – I need to walk to the post office at dinner time and then after work I have to go collect a prescription and buy some ballet shoes from the dance shop. I will definitely be back in heels tomorrow!

I was going to wear my grey waistcoat over the stripey top but the heating has been playing up at the office (ie. not coming on in the mornings) so I thought the knitted tank might be warmer if it was chilly due to lack of heating. The heat seems to be fixed (touch wood) fortunately.

Teal tank – Next
Grey stripe top – Dorothy Perkins Tall
Teal skirt – H&M
Teal tights – Accessorize
Silver shoes – Priceless Shoes
Teal heart necklace – Scope
Silver earrings – gifted
Teal & silver bangles – Accessorize
Thumb ring - Courtesy of Superior Wedding Rings

Total Est. Cost £55