Pick of the High Street: Dresses at Oasis

As I’m not shopping at the moment, I thought I would bring you some of my favourite items from the British High Street. We’ll start with Oasis, and the item today is dresses.
First up is the 2 Way Lurex Stripe dress. It’s a take on a sweater dress and although I usually say never wear horizontal stripes, I think this works because of the ribbing. It’s down to £40 (from £60) in the sale and they only have a size 16 left (but as Oasis call a EUR42 a 16, it’s probably nearer a 14). It’s grey, it’s sparkly, what’s not to love?

Secondly the Trench Dress. Obviously ‘Trench’ is the new word for ‘Shirt’ as it looks like a shirt dress to me! In classic black, this will set you back £50 but it’s versatile as it’s smart enough to wear to work, but can be dressed up with accessories for drinks or partying in the evening.

This is my 200th post!!!!

Outfit: Wednesday Suit

Black jacket – Long Tall Sally
Black pencil skirt – Long Tall Sally
Turquoise cotton rib T shirt/vest – Dorothy Perkins
Black shrug – too old to remember where it’s from
Black tights – Silkies
Black knee high boots – Arturo Chiang (Century 21)

Accessories:
Turquoise floating bead necklace – Accessorize
Turquoise bangles – Oxfam (from the selection of new jewellery)
Turquoise disc earrings - Accessorize

Labels

I have been through and given all my previous posts labels so you can now view all the shoe related posts, or outfits, or whatever. Also, I’ve finally got linking sussed so posts will look a little neater from now on.

Outfit: Blue and Black Tuesday

Blue and black jersey dress – Dorothy Perkins
Black cotton rib polo neck sweater – Marks and Spencer
Black cotton rich 100 denier tights – George at ASDA
Blue suede shoe boots – New Look

No More Shopping

As mentioned below in my 5 things post, I am going to attempt to make no further purchases until my birthday, mid-April. This will be hard for me, especially as I really want this wrap dress from Tall Girls, but I shall resist!

Saturday Shopping

I bought this dress on Saturday from Dorothy Perkins. It’s fab and I will be wearing it tomorrow so check back then for the outfit post to see what it looks like on.

Outfit: Black Monday

Feeling kind of blah today, not even my new suit can cheer me up.

Black jacket – Long Tall Sally
Black trousers – Long Tall Sally
Teal v neck tank top – Next
Teal and black print crinkle shirt – Next
Teal boots – Faith

Five Things

I’ve been tagged by Karinaxoxo so here are 5 things you didn’t know about me:

I went to boarding school. I was only a boarder in the 6th form (was a day girl at the same school for the 1st 5 years) but I loved it!

I take my tea black. It all started when I was in the 6th form and one Sunday night back at school after half term, we had no milk in the common room fridge. I wanted tea so thought I would try it black…and decided I liked it better that way!

I don’t drink coffee. I’ve tried it various different ways: black, white, with sugar, mocha, but can’t bring myself to like it.

I am not doing any more shopping until my birthday in April. There, I put it in print, I have to stick to it now…

I love country music and am proud of that fact. The Dixie Chicks and Chely Wright are two of my favourites.

I am going to tag: Forever Amber, Shoes Glorious Shoes, My Wardrobe Today, and Confessions of a Shopaholic.

Japanese Pants

My sister sent me this on email. I think it’s a joke. I HOPE it’s a joke!!

“What you see below are not see-thru skirts… They are actually prints on the skirts to make it look as if the knickers are visible and these are the current rage in Japan.”

Outfit: Casual Friday

Blue/teal cotton rib v neck sweater – Gap
White long sleeve Favourite T – Gap
Skinny jeans – Topshop

Blue glitter belt - H&M
Brown knee high boots – Nine West (Debenhams)

The End of the Sizing Lottery?

Well it could be, in Spain at least. By 2008, 8000 Spanish women will have been measured in an attempt to standardise clothing sizes and ease the pressure on young girls to be unhealthily thin, hopefully preventing the development of eating disorders. The good news for us British women? Spanish chains Zara & Mango will be part of this standardisation.
Read the full story here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/6300793.stm

Schuh ‘Fiona’ Peeptoe Pumps

Look at these!! They named a shoe after me!

This Week I Will Be Mostly…

…wearing brown Nine West boots
…reading (and attempting to finish) ‘The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid‘ by Bill Bryson
…watching Sex & The City DVDs. Still. Working my way through them and am on to Season 2
…eating porridge
…shopping in the city centre on Saturday. Hopefully!

Outfit: Blue Thursday

Blue wool mix sweater dress – H&M
Blue lace trim cotton cami – Marks and Spencer
Brown belt – Dorothy Perkins
Brown rib socks (worn as tights) – Sock Dreams
Brown boots – Nine West (Debenhams)

Wearing over the top for warmth: Pale blue wool cardi – Ebay

Jones The Bootmaker

I have just discovered that Jones the Bootmaker does shoes in a EUR42. This is good news as it increases the number of places I can buy shoes! They are usually a bit out of my price range but these brown 'Tussel' boots are down to £39 from £130 in the sale. They are leather and leather lined. Can't argue with that!

New Season Ranges at Topshop and Dorothy Perkins

The Tall ranges at these stores have just had a load of things added to them. I want:

Dorothy Perkins
Blue & Black dress
Blue roll neck dress
Pink & black tunic top
Turquoise sweater

Topshop
Grey coat
White shirt

Outfit: No Snow Wednesday

So why is it, when most of the country has snow, the Frozen North some how misses out? Again! This happened last year and it’s totally not fair, I love the snow!

Brown wool mix pinstripe jacket – Long Tall Sally
Brown wool mix pinstripe trousers – Long Tall Sally
Red cashmere v neck sweater – George @ ASDA
White stretch cotton shirt – Oasis
Red ankle boots – Nine West (Century 21)

A Few of My Shoes

Outfit: Tuesday

Beige cashmere sweater – Benetton
White cotton shirt – Gap
Brown/blue/beige wool skirt – Next
Brown ribbed cotton socks (worn as tights) – Sock Dreams
Brown Boots – Nine West (Debenhams)

The skirt is checked although you can't tell that from the picture. And the boots are the same as yesterday.

Oh Wow. That’s Disgusting!

I love knee high boots, but lime green? In a patent finish? With a 5” heel? Uck! £50 from http://www.theshoemustgoon.co.uk/ (that’s the shoe must go on, not, the shoe must goon!!)

All In One Store

So, how does everyone feel about wearing an entire outfit from one store? Fashion faux-pas or interesting challenge? I am choosing to see it as a challenge this week and will attempt to compile an outfit from just one store (excluding the shoes!). Could be easier said than done!

Outfit: Frosty Monday

Brown wool mix pinstripe jacket – Long Tall Sally
Brown wool mix pinstripe trousers – Long Tall Sally
Blue cotton rib polo neck sweater – Next
Brown boots – Nine West (Debenhams)

I'm not sure the boots really go as they're a paler brown than the suit, but as it's icy out there's bound to be grit on the car park and these have a chunkier sole than my other boots so might offer more protection!!

The Bag Is In Charge

A while back I posted about how I go about Choosing An Outfit, starting with the shoes and working from there. But recently, I have been starting with the handbag, then going through the shoe process. The reason for this? I like my shoes and bag to co-ordinate, and am too lazy to change bags everyday for work, especially when I need to use one large enough to carry my lunch in. Yes I probably am bonkers little sister, before you leave me another comment, but that's just what I do.

This Week I Will Be Mostly…

…wearing red
…reading the January issue of Company that got buried over Christmas when I put my tree up
…watching Sex & The City DVDs. Again. I’m totally addicted!
…eating – or rather drinking – cough syrup. And it tastes foul!
…shopping online at LTS with my 20% discount! Yay!

Outfit: Casual Friday

Red cashmere v neck sweater – George at ASDA
White square neck t shirt – Dorothy Perkins
Denim skirt – Tall Girls
Black 100 denier cotton rich tights – George at ASDA
Black knee high boots – Arturo Chiang (Century 21)

I love this skirt. It was described as ‘mini’ but it’s just above my knees (how tall do you need to be for it to be mini?). It has fab pockets on the back with flap fastenings and dark blue embroidery on one of them.
I am also wearing a black scarf from George at ASDA as I have a chesty cough and it feels like the scarf is helping!

Wanted!

These would do instead of the LTS ones I posted the other day. In fact, I think I like them more. They’re £35 in the sale at Tall Girls.

Outfit: A Grey Day

Grey wool mix pinstripe jacket – Dorothy Perkins
Grey wool mix pinstripe trousers – Dorothy Perkins
Darker grey wool polo neck sweater – Chain store seconds shop
Dark red ankle boots – Nine West

This is what I was talking about earlier in the week with my suit dilemma. The trousers of this one fit fine as they are from the Tall range. But helpfully, Dorothy Perkins only made the jacket in a regular size so the sleeves are OK, but erring on the short side. I also bought a size up to try get more sleeve length. That’s OK though as I can layer underneath it when it’s cold and windy like today.

Crimes of Fashion: Part 2

Why are some women incapable of buying trousers the right length? Do they not know that trousers are supposed to be ½ an inch off the floor, not an inch or more above their shoes? I mean, really, how hard is it? Even if you are tall there are at least 5 places I can think of to buy long length trousers. And scarily, this is a common problem. I was out last night and of the 8 women I could see wearing trousers, 5 of them had on pairs too short for them. That’s 62.5%!! I’m sure the national average is higher than that. So ladies, next time you buy trousers, think about what you will be wearing them with and take along the correct heel height to try them with.

Shoe Haven

I'm now blogging about shoes at Shoe Haven too so check it out at http://shoehaven.blogspot.com/

Outfit: Wednesday

Black and cream wrap dress – Dorothy Perkins
Black t-shirt – Dorothy Perkins
Black tights – Silkies
Red shoes – Next (as yesterday)


Was also wearing this morning for warmth: Black cardi – Long Tall Sally

Tall Girls Spending Spree – Update

Well all my things arrived yesterday and they’re fab! The picture of this top does not do it justice. It is described as electric blue and that it is! It’s so bright. It’s a little baggier on me than in this picture but I like it like that. I wore it out last night and love it.

Wanted!

The red ones. £45 at Long Tall Sally

Outfit: Dull Tuesday

Black cord flared trousers – Topshop
Red cotton vest – New Look
Grey wool rib polo neck sweater – Chain store seconds shop
Red shoes - Next

Outfit: Black and White Monday

Black jacket – Dunnes
Black bias cut skirt – Dunnes
Black long sleeve favourite T – Gap
Black & white houndstooth ¾ length sleeve top – Dorothy Perkins
Black patent faux leather belt – Dorothy Perkins
Black tights – George at ASDA
Black brogue style shoes – Dolcis

In a Dilemma

I have a dilemma and I need your help. I just got the new Long Tall Sally Catalogue. In it is this suit. I wear suits for work and only have one that really fits properly (sleeves the right length, jacket waist at the right height etc), because it was purchased from Long Tall Sally. I have others that are almost right and look OK on, but they don’t feel as good as the one from LTS. So now I really want a new suit that fits properly. Add to that the fact that if I buy now, I can get a 2nd pair of trousers or a skirt half price. I would go for the bootcut trousers and the pencil skirt, in black. The jacket is £65 and the bottoms are £35 (so the second one would be £17.50 – bargain!). But that’s a total of (tries to add up in head!)…erm…£117.50? (Is that right? Really, my maths is atrocious!) So, what should I do?!! To buy or not to buy, that is the question!

Crimes of Fashion

One of the new links at the side is for Amber’s fabulous site, The Fashion Police. She has various entries entitled ‘Crimes of Fashion’ and that got me to thinking about the crimes of fashion I see on a daily basis. Working in an office full of men, there’s not that many. However, I do pass a woman walking down the road every morning and I really want to stop my car and point out where she’s going wrong. She wears black trousers, stretchy ones, with a waist length top and let’s be honest here, she doesn’t have a small bottom. But the worst part about her ensemble? She wears trainers. White ones! Now ladies, if you must wear trainers away from the gym/squash court/sports centre (and sometimes, you must), then please, please, wear any colour other than white. Especially when they are not teamed with sports gear.

New Links

I have added a whole bunch of new links to the side bar and removed the few that no longer work or are to sites no longer being updated.

Outfit: Casual Friday

Black v neck sweater dress – George at ASDA
White long sleeve Favourite T – Gap
Cuffed cropped jeans – Dorothy Perkins
Teal boots – Faith
Teal/green/turquoise scarf (worn in hair) – M&S

Topshop Boots

A while back I posted that I’d like these shoe-boots from Topshop. Well the other day I was in there and these were in the sale. They are every bit as gorgeous a blue as they look in the picture but when I tried them on, they just looked odd. It’s the deep cut in the front that does it and it put me right off them.

Should I Be Worried?

Whilst browsing the Tall section of the Topshop website for anything I’d like to buy (that’s nothing then), I just spotted this. It’s called a ‘Racer Back Playsuit’ and is described as ‘all-in-one waistcoat and shorts’. Hmmm. Not my thing but if you like it, it’s £45.

Blue

According to the excellent Style Bytes (link at the side), blue is going to be a hot colour this spring/summer. This is pleasing news as blue is my colour, I wear it a lot. So hopefully the shops will be full of blue things.

Look Book

I’ve started making a Look Book, basically cutting out pictures from old magazines of looks I like or want to try, and putting them in a notebook. Thing is, I don’t like as many looks as you would think. I’ve been through several magazines and have ended up with only one or two pictures from each. This tells me that I don’t like the current trends as much as I thought I did. Either that, or I’m reading the wrong magazines!

Outfit: Still Wet and Windy

Brown wool mix pinstripe trousers – Long Tall Sally
Brown wool mix pinstripe jacket – Long Tall Sally
Teal v neck tank top – Next
White long sleeved Favourite T – Gap
Teal boots – Faith (see Tuesday’s entry for picture)

This Week I Will Be Mostly…

…wearing boots to stop my feet getting wet in all this rain!
…reading February’s Cosmopolitan
…watching Ugly Betty, it’s fab!
…eating baked potatoes with beans and cheese
…shopping for foundation (still haven’t got any, they were out of my colour in 2 shops!)

Outfit: Wednesday

The colours aren’t very clear on this photo, must be the light.
Blue velvet waistcoat – Primark
Beige cotton rib polo neck – Gap
Brown knee length striped shorts – H&M
Brown tights – Topshop
Navy patent shoes – Magrit (outlet mall)

A Spending Spree!

I have been doing a little online shopping today, and have purchased the following in the sale at Tall Girls (http://www.tallgirls.co.uk/).

Blue top:
Denim Skirt:

Brown cords:

Brown top:

Riding style boots
It’s no secret that I love this site for its super long lengths so in keeping with my New Year’s resolution to only buy things designed for girls my height, I thought I ought to take advantage of the sale.

Outfit: Wet and Windy Tuesday

Grey wool A-line skirt – Gap
Grey wool pinstripe jacket – Next
Teal & black pattern crinkle blouse – Next
Teal cashmillion v neck tank top – Next
Black tights – Silkies
Teal calf length boots – Faith

Lots of Next today, just as well I didn’t wear the trousers that match the jacket or I would have been completely Next!

Outfit: Black & Turquoise

Black A-Line Skirt – Dunnes
Black fitted jacket – Dunnes
Turquoise scoop neck t-shirt/vest – Dorothy Perkins
Black Argyle pattern tights – Boots
Turquoise pointy faux suede lace up boots with faux fur trim – Ebay

Accessories:
Turquoise floating bead necklace – Accessorize
Turquoise disc earrings – Accessorize
Turquoise & silver bangles - Oxfam

I thought I had a picture of the boots but I don't. A real shame as they're fabulous! I will try to take one at some point.

This Week I Will Be Mostly…

…wearing jackets with a nipped in waist
…reading the new Bill Bryson book I got for Christmas – ‘The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid’
…watching Celebrity Big Brother – I love it and I’m not ashamed to say so!
…eating nothing between meals (well, almost nothing. But less than I have been recently anyway)
…shopping for foundation and multivitamin tablets

Outfit: Tights

Black A-Line Skirt – Dunnes
Black fitted jacket – Dunnes
Black cotton ribbed polo neck – M&S
Electric Blue Tights – Jonathan Aston (Debenhams)
Black knee high boots – Arturo Chiang (Century 21)

Frock Coat

So I also succumbed to this beautiful coat in the Dorothy Perkins sale. It was half price and fits beautifully (not that you can tell that from the picture!). I can’t wait to wear it, will have to get the young man to take me out somewhere!

BBC Predicts Denim Is On The Way Out

It’s true, in their ‘Predictions for 2007’ feature, the BBC website says the following:

Jeans, in their seemingly endless incarnations - bootcut, hipster, wide-legged, high-waisted - have been THE High Street fashion success story of recent years. But that's about to end, says Hadley Freeman, fashion writer on the Guardian.
"A combination of customer fatigue, overexposure (not least by the Wags in Baden Baden last summer, with their seemingly requisite wardrobe of bootcut or skinny jeans) and, frankly, a lack of any new denim styles left, means jeans, while still a wardrobe basic, won't generate anywhere near the excitement that they have for the past half decade," says Freeman.
"At the end of 2006 you could already see customers and retailers experimenting with alternatives, from leggings to shorts over cashmere tights."
So, Freeman's tip for 2007: tunic dresses with thick tights, "a look that is comfortable, flattering and can be worn to work or out in the evening".

Personally, I can’t see this happening. A few years back jeans were supposed to be ‘uncool’ as they were increasingly worn by uncool men such as Jeremy Clarkson and your dad, but did this stop us wearing them? No. And I don’t think it will happen this time either.

New Year Resolutions

So, anyone made any then? I have a list of a few things I will try to stick to:
Chocolate is only allowed on Fridays and bank holidays
Moisturise every day
Exfoliate every day
Dress up more

The first one is an attempt to diet and eat better. The second and third are to stop being so lazy about skin care. The fourth is to ensure I wear all my nice clothes. I think it’s a shame people don’t dress up anymore and that jeans have become acceptable in almost every social situation.

Outfit: New Shoes!

Went shopping yesterday and got some new shoe boots in Faith for a whole £20! And as I had a gift voucher they cost me nothing in real money.

Grey city shorts – Next
Grey wool ribbed polo neck sweater – Seconds store
Blue velvet waistcoat – Primark
Grey ribbed thigh high socks (worn as tights) – Sock Dreams
Navy shoe boots – Faith

As my fab new phone has a camera function and will email pictures, I may now be able to start posting outfit pictures…stay tuned!!