Outfit: High Waisted Skirt

Electric blue blouse – Dorothy Perkins
Denim skirt (refashioned from a pair of jeans) – Topshop

Brown belt - Dorothy Perkins
Blue patent shoes – New Look
Blue & silver bangles – Oxfam

More Matalan

Do you know, I think I could easily develop an addiction to shopping at Matalan. Known for their lack of organisation and general dishevelment (though not as jumble sale-like as Primark can get), my local store appears to have had a make over. I took a trip there at lunchtime the other day and was heartened to find a tidy and inviting store. I couldn’t decide what had actually changed, but the store felt light and airy like I don’t remember it before. The shoes were on the shelves, in pairs, and with plenty of choice for size. It was quiet and an altogether pleasant shopping experience.

So what would I recommend buying? Well, in the absence of an online shopping facility (come on Matalan, time to sort that out), pictures will be limited, but take a look at the shoes. In addition to the pair I am wearing today (priced at a mere £14), there are some lovely bright teal T bars available though the price of these is anyone’s guess as there were no tags attached to any of them.

These lampshade dress coats are just £25, and predictably, I just love the blue one.

The website lists these dresses as being £8, but I’m sure they were down to £4 in store.

And if you’re looking for a cheap foray into the shoe boot trend, these would be a good start at £14.

A more traditional style with button detail is £20.

Wanted: New Season Buys from Tall Girls

How cute is this dress?! It’s £38 from Tall Girls and comes in brown, black, grey or white.

And I’ve yet to spot any high waisted jeans on the high street that have long enough legs for me. Could these be the answer at £45?

Outfit: More Red and Black!

Taking inspriation from Queen Michelle over at Kingdom of Style, I bought some red tights and this is their first outing. Since they only cost £1 from Primark it I decided it wouldn't matter if I didn't wear them very often as they're quite bold. But I really like them!

Black cardi - Long Tall Sally

Black & white houndstooth top - Dorothy Perkins

Black patent belt - Dorothy Perkins

Black skirt - Long Tall Sally

Red tights - Primark

Black patent shoes - Matalan

Outfit: Red and Black

Black dress - George@ASDA

Red belt - Market stall

Black shrug - unknown

Black Argyle pattern tights - Boots

Red shoes - Barratts

Outfit: Red & Grey

Grey city shorts – Next
White rib tank – Topshop
Red faux-wrap sweater – George @ ASDA (charity shop)
Grey tights – Ethel Austin
Grey ankle boots – Ethel Austin
Red heart pendant – Claire’s Accessories
Red glitter bangles – Primark

Outfit – Back to School!

So it’s my first day back at work after my 2 week break and I feel like I’ve been away for ages!

Grey city shorts – Next
Black cotton rib sweater – Gap
White rib cami – Topshop
Black fishnets – George at ASDA
Black & cream shoes – Next (charity shop)

This Week I Will Be Mostly…

…wearing more autumnal wear since it’s September
…reading The Duchess of Windsor: The Uncommon Life of Wallis Simpson
…watching The Queen that I taped last night
…listening to Amy MacDonald’s album
…eating Dairy Milk ice creams
…shopping my closet for autumn ideas

Matalan Purchases

I’m back! I did a little more shopping during my 2 weeks off and here are the best buys.

Shoes, £2.50 Matalan

Bag (it's grey, honest!), £4 Matalan

I also stocked up on gloves and scarves as they were all in the sale for aroung 75p!

Outfit: Teal Wednesday

Green print dress - Florence + Fred at Tesco (charity shop)
White cami - charity shop
Teal tights - Jonathan Aston (MyTights.com)
Silver shoes - Faith

Refashioning: Jeans Become Skirt

This skirt started life as a pair of high waisted, incredibly wide legged jeans. They were a bit on the short side but still fitted fine around the waist so I decided to refashion them into a skirt.
Denim skirt - refashioned from Topshop jeans
White cami - charity shop
Teal shrug - Ann Taylor Loft (charity shop)
Teal tights - Jonathan Aston (MyTights.com)

Cosmopolitan's 8 Autumn Essentials (Plus One Of My Own!)

According to the September Issue of Cosmopolitan magazine there are 8 essential pieces to have for autumn, and the good news is: you probably own most of them already!
1. Fitted Jacket - who doesn't have one of these? Be it as part of a suit for work, a cute little jacket to wear with jeans, or even a denim number, most of us have one of these in our wardrobes. Denim jackets are on their way back in by the way, so dig yours out from the back or your wardrobe, or from under the rest of the coats on the coat hooks - just don't pair it with jeans!

2. Boyfriend Shirt - There are plenty to choose from on the high street, or pinch one from your boyfriend/brother/dad and wear cinched in with a belt.

3. Tunic Dress - We all had these this summer so hang on to the ones in darker colours to wear for the new season. Add heels and thick tights and you're good to go!

4. Pencil Skirt - These have been around a while now so chances are you have one. If not, check out the offerings at Dorothy Perkins and Miss Selfridge. Again, worn with coloured opague tights, this was a big look on the catwalks.

5. Pretty Blouse - Boyfriend shirt not for you? No matter, try something more feminine instead. Frills, ruffles and pussy bows are all available so there'll be something to suit everyone.

6. Sweater Dress - Back for Fall '07, this was one of my favourite items last year. Wear over jeans, leggings or coloured opaques and cinch in at the waist.

7. Wide Leg Trousers - Already a popular look this summer, the wide leg is set to stick around for the autumn/winter.

8. The Cropped Jacket - A hot item this spring, dig yours out again to wear in the next couple of months, before it gets too cold.

As for my essential item pick - shoe boots. They are everywhere in the fashion magazines at the moment and were shown on several runways as part of the A/W '07 collections. These were big last winter too so you may not even need to buy new shoes this autumn. Wait, what am I saying? You always need to buy new shoes, a girl can never have too many!

This Week I Will Be Mostly...

...reading Look magazine
...eating out
...listening to my vinyl record collection
...watching the Devil Wears Prada
...shopping for new boots!

Outfit: New Boots!

I did a little shopping on Saturday and these boots were the star find. Just £15 in the River Island sale, they are suede all the way up, and come higher up on my legs than any pair I've ever owned. I didn't end up going anywhere in the boots, I wore this outfit last night to go to a friend's house, but as it's a new house you have to remove your shoes on arrival so I didn't think that was a worthy first outing for such fabulous boots.
Black sweater - Dorothy Perkins
Denin skirt - Tall Girls
Grey tights - Ethel Austin
Green suede boots - River Island

"I'll be seeing you." "I hope not sporadically!"

So it turns out we have dial up access whilst awaiting the broadband connection to be activated, so updates will be forthcoming, but they are likely to be sporadic.

A Two Week Break

I am on holiday for 2 weeks now. I may get chance to post during that time, but if not, enjoy the archives and I’ll see you in a fortnight!

Outfit: Casual Friday

Black shrug – unknown
Blue top – Primark
Dark skinny jeans – Topshop
Blue shoes – New Look

This is my new favourite top, and it was just £2 in Primark. I think I’m going to get a ‘spare’ if there’s any left tomorrow, in case anything happens to this one.

Outfit: Mixed Thursday

Multicolour faux wrap dress – Next (charity shop)
Blue cami – New Look
Blue shoes – New Look

These are my newest and oldest items from New Look! The cami I bought in 1998 (it’s practically vintage!) and the shoes were new a couple of weeks ago.

Outfit: Bright Blue for a Dull Day

Electric blue v neck sweater – Florence + Fred at Tesco
Brown tweed city shorts – H&M
Electric blue tights – Jonathan Aston (Sunwin House)
Brown shoes – Roberto Vianni (Debenhams)

I’ve had a few comments recently about the darkness of my pictures. It’s a combination of factors – a hideous uplighter shade in my hallway that blocks most of the light and a lack of sunshine in the mornings. I’ve tried a makeshift solution today, putting a lamp on the floor and twisting round the light shade on the ceiling light. I intend replacing the upligher shade as soon as I can as I really can’t see the point of them. Anyway, hopefully today’s picture is better lit (apart from the strange shadows on the wall!).

Outfit: Coloured Tights!

Well, if the weather is going to act like it’s Autumn, I’m going to dress like it! It’s raining again so boots were a must. The tights were just £1 in Primark and I’m really impressed with the quality.

Grey city shorts – Next
Teal cotton rib sweater – Gap
White pinstripe ¾ sleeve shirt – Zara
Teal tights – Primark
Grey boots – Ethel Austin
Silver bangles - Scope