Monthly Archives: March 2015

Silver brogues

I love shoes. Shoes will love you unconditionally. Fat or thin, your shoes will always fit (EXCEPT, if like me, for when more than 6mths pregnant your feet will only fit in flip flops).

My new shoe obsession has been acquired over recent months – I rejected them at first but have found myself coming back to them time and again. I’ve always had a bit of rockabilly in me, so it makes sense that I have worn beetle creepers on and off all my shoe buying life. These new obsessions are a slightly more refined flatform.

First up let’s take a look at the Stella McCartney wooden flatforms – just the $995…

Pretty cool huh? Alternatively there is the Prada flatform brogue to lust over, cheaper at $950 😉

Or you can head to Zara.com and have them both for less than $250!

And here I am in my silver brogues today – I am totally smitten with them!

Shoes – Zara // Jeans – J.Crew (Up to 30% off with SpringStyle) // Top – J.Crew (on sale plus up to 30% off with SpringStyle)

What to wear with the denim shorts

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Okay so my summer bottom half is sorted – denim shorts in an array of washes and distressing – mostly from J.Crew with a pair from Madewell thrown in. So what to wear on top? I have some great t-shirts that I have collected over the years, some well loved and in their natural state of distressing, others newer and more basic like these tanks from J.Crew (25% off with HappySpring). However, I want to wear my shorts in the evening too on vacation, especially as on our flight from Istanbul to N. Cyprus we have the lowest weight allowance ever, so my summer wardrobe has to be capsule by necessity. That means I need some ‘dressier’ tops to wear in the evening – as light as possible too 😉

For me Mango have come up trumps again. I find their tops fit my top half far better than Zara, maybe as they are slightly more generous in my opinion. Here are my top picks – some of which I’ve just ordered so fingers crossed they’ll be here in time for the beach next week!

First this tie dye top is a fabulous basic and a great price too!

This t-shirt also comes in coral and I love the fringing – very similar to this IRO tee I keep seeing.

This is new on the Mango site this weekend – a lighter blue shade of the shirt I have ordered – but again a beautiful soft, boxy, short sleeved shirt that can be worn with harems or a skirt too.

Mango always do great peasant/embroidered tops and this year they have some beautiful short sleeved ones. I have ordered this blue one just because the color is so striking and different.

Both of these are on my list for summer – I can’t choose between them so might need both 🙂

Or alternatively there is a camisole version which I think is gorgeous for evenings by Kyrenia harbor with a sunless tan and a bottle of ice cold Efes! Mango have even styled them as I would wear them – simplicity at its best.

Continuing with camis I love this chambray/denim top to wear with white denim shorts.

For a couple of dressier tops I have ordered the following black and cream tops – loose and airy for steamy nights in Istanbul.

Finishing with a couple of peasant tops – another stunning short sleeved one with beaded detail.

This is a beautiful simple version that will be easy to pack and wash, long sleeves this time so I can wear it in Bury too before we leave for Istanbul! Always thinking!

So is anyone else balancing variety with luggage allowances!? It’s a challenge but I have to say one I am happy to deal with as previously I have ALWAYS over packed and only worn 25% of what I take – this time will be different! The consolation of course is that I am heading to a country famous for it’s clothing manufacturing – there will be some shopping even if I and the children have to wear it all home 😉

This weekend has been pretty lazy so far. My Husband and I went out for dinner last night to our favorite restaurant which is unfortunately changing hands and will become a steak house – we’ve had some amazing nights there in the years it has been opened and celebrated birthdays, anniversaries and our great friends even got engaged there. It’s been fun Abattoir.

Boots – AllSaints // Leather trousers – J.Brand // Shirt – Mango // Jacket – J.Crew // Clutch – YSL

I had lots of lovely comments about my outfit – specifically the lovely long, drapey shirt I’m wearing – again this is Mango and it is currently on sale and also available in a great blue and this beautiful coffee color.

On Friday I lived in my workout gear and I am still struggling to move my arms after lots of upper body work! Back on Thursday it was a day for ecru and off white.

Boots – Rag & Bone Newbury boots // Jeans – TopShop Hayden // T-shirt – J.Crew (on sale plus an extra 30% off with HappySpring)

I’m off to soak up last nights wine with a massive curry – yup I better hit that gym again tomorrow!

Can’t get it out of my head

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Sometimes, in fact mostly, Pinterest can be deadly. As I was watching Mad Men last night I was surfing Pinterest looking for some denim inspiration – i.e. images to help me style pieces that I ALREADY have. Damn Pinterest, I fell in love with this image.

It’s an image from J.Crew – and I already have the trousers – but I LOVE the shirt. Light denim, boxy and short sleeves. Can I find it anywhere? – No of course not – and I now NEED it.

Thanks to a call I put out on Twitter and Instagram I have found two that are very similar and may meet my ‘needs’. I’ve ordered both to compare and contrast…you know how dangerous that is…

The first is from Everlane. Super simple, gorgeous shape, great price and guaranteed great quality. I love this as it doesn’t have pockets on it. Thanks to Rebecca for helping me find it!

It also comes in a light denim.

The second is from Mango – the soft pocket shirt. I love this one because of the pockets and I love the collar, or lack of collar. Thanks to Eve for helping me find this one!

So both are on their way – which one do you prefer? I’ll show and tell as soon as they arrive, and please do let me know if you see anything else similar! I have a bee in my bonnet now!

Today it’s a day for comfy dungarees! The sun is shining and I’m about to get changed for a run!

Dungarees – H&M // Shoes – Dolce Vita // Shirt – J.Crew (similar here)

My summer uniform

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Looking back, I feel like every summer I have miss calculated my summer closet. It gets hot here. Really hot. I forget how hot, so every spring I design my closet around 70 degree temperatures, not 90 degree temperatures. Plus, when planning my vacations I imagine beach clubs, reclining on yachts and sitting under fans on patios drinking cocktails. Foolish – this never transpires. We have 2 small children so I end up covered in sand, ice cream and spf, and again it is always too hot to care about ‘dressing up’. Last year I took ‘going out’ clothes to Spain and ended up living in denim shorts and tees, or a t-shirt dress. This year I am aiming to be more practical from the start. My closet will consist of shorts and tees – no more scuba dresses – which look great on but are ridiculous in the heat.

Thankfully J.Crew have 30% off using SPRINGSTYLE today and here are some of the items I have in my virtual cart!

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE J.Crew’s denim. It is fabulous quality and for some reason their cut fits me really well. I take a 29 in most styles – be warned J.Crew embrace vanity sizing plus their denim does give – not too much – but I always wear their jeans 3-4 times before washing as they soften up beautifully. I have their denim shorts from previous years and here are my picks from this season – all with 30% off too!

White denim shorts are a must as an alternative to blue denim. Just fabulous with tanned legs and tan or silver sandals.

These distressed boy shorts have a higher rise than others I have tried and come in the perfect summer wash.

This is probably my favorite pair. Again the perfect amount of distressing and you can wear them turned up or with the raw edge. They a lovely and stretchy too so you may want to try a size down for a snugger fit.

I have this pair from last year and they again relax beautifully with wear. They are a really lightweight denim and the perfect pair of beach shorts.

Finally this denim pair is a lighter wash for those of you that prefer a lighter denim for the summer.

While we’re at J.Crew you should definitely take advantage of the 30% off – here’s what’s on my list today.

I’ve been hovering over this shirt for a while as I love the fact it is classic yet doesn’t have buttons all the way down it. It will look amazing over leather pants, skinny jeans or dressed down with a pair of denim shorts. I may well pull the trigger after seeing how amazing Laura looks in hers today.

These jeans are the perfect amount of distressing and the denim is lovely and stretchy. The reviewers love them too! They are already reduced and then there is the extra 30% off on top!

I adore this boyfriend shirt. I think I am starting to follow a more classic look with my clothes!

For me it is the color of this popover which really appeals – the lavender will be stunning over sun kissed skin.

Now these jackets are not on offer – but I am wearing my navy one again today – it really has become a staple in my closet. I adore the popped collar on it. I’m waiting for the kiwi to come into stock but I’ve also fallen for the metallic version – I love how it is styled with all white.

My obsession with J.Crew has led me to investigate Madewell – their more grown up, less preppy sibling. After seeing Sincerely Jules in her shorts this weekend I felt obliged to order them and try. Nordstrom have also started stocking Madewell which is great news as they ship internationally and their customer service and returns policy is fantastic.

I’m also obsessing over this peasant top which is currently on sale.

I just love the grey wash on these denim shorts too!

So there’s a lot to choose from but at least I feel I can still have some variety with my shorts and t-shirt combinations!

On Friday I was willing the sun to shine – it worked for one day and then rain, rain, rain all day yesterday 😦

Shoes – Gucci // Jeans – MiH (just $88 here reduced from $250) // Top – Mango

Today, as I mentioned, I’m back in my Regent blazer. How did I cope without it?!

Blazer – J.Crew // Sneakers – Nike from J.Crew (similar here) // Jeans – J.Crew (currently on sale) // Top – AllSaints

Experimenting with denim

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A few weeks ago everyone was talking about these H&M wide leg jeans.

They are a cheaper version, or tribute to the Rachel Comey jeans worn brilliantly by Leandra here.

They were unavailable online in the US and I managed to try a pair on in Manchester when I was home. I’d heard they came up tiny so tried a UK 14 but couldn’t even pull them over my butt! Hoping that they were miss labelled (glass half full and all that) I ordered a pair online too. Well what do you know they fit! Certainly still snug but I was quite relieved that I hadn’t piled on as many pounds as I was being led to believe – though I could have believed it with all the Monster Munch I consumed while back in Bury 🙂

Having got them back to Atlanta I decided I was very unsure about them – lets say they are not exactly leg lengthening – but the rebel in me still loves how different and wacky they are. I trawled through images looking for inspiration on how to wear them.

I’ve played it pretty safe with how I have styled them today – toning it down with ballet flats and a blazer. I am feeling quite courageous though and have some more radical ideas for future outings – be warned!

Jeans – H&M // Flats – Tory Burch Eddie (no longer available – similar here) // Top – Mango // Jacket – J.Crew

While many of you will think they are hideous, I thought this was the perfect time to share some very wise words from The Man Repeller:

“I like — nay, love — these pants. They’re me. I know they don’t look good but I think they’re cool. They make me feel like a more interesting version of myself and that, to me, is what style is about: presenting a difficulty and attempting to unpack it or make sense of it. I can’t tell you exactly why I like them but I can sharply recall having never really cared for pants that do the things we’re supposed to expect of them: flatten our stomachs, tighten our asses, makes our legs look longer and leaner, yadi ya. Maybe that’s a function of my believing that fashion is not about what’s flattering and vice versa or maybe this is simply a matter of style. And the thing about style, like with everything else, is that if you believe in it, you have to be willing to fight for it.”

Khaki trousers

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Today this photo we have all seen many times was my source of inspiration. All hail the amazing Ms. Alt.

And though I had my heels ready to wear today, after a run yesterday evening, my knees begged me to wear sneakers today.

Sneakers – Adidas Samoas // Trousers – Zara // T-shirt – Splendid // Jacket – Zara

These khaki utility harems are wonderful but sadly are from Zara last year. But fear not I have found some great alternatives that will allow you to play around with the khaki color trend, while taking you into summer.

These culottes are gorgeous and can be dressed down with sneakers and a black or white tee.

Many of my blogging friends have and love these TopShop distressed utility pants – I love the fit having tried them on the other day in our new store. Again they are great for dressing up or down with sneakers or heels.

If you prefer a bit more drape these wrap front joggers are gorgeous.

A cheaper alternative are these joggers from New Look. At just $36 they are a bargain!

I love this pair from Warehouse – a gorgeous drapey fabric and a little dressier than the New Look pair.

These are probably the closest in style that I have found to mine – but with less of a dropped crotch, so I know many of you will prefer these. They have 3% elastane so will have a nice stretch to them

If you prefer more of a utility trouser here is a great alternative to the distressed TopShop pair.

Now don’t style them like this but these culottes are actually cord so also give a nod to the 70s trend. They are lovely and will be perfect with sandals too in the summer.

Finally if you’re somewhere like Atlanta, where temperatures are already rising, try this linen pair. Gorgeous with a crisp white shirt as shown here, and just $40.

As for my jacket – well I think it might turn into one of those items that many bloggers own – it is gorgeous and I love the cut at the back too. It’s going to be really versatile with jeans and trousers. I am wearing a Large.

There you go – now you are all set to work your Emmanuelle inspired looks too!

Dressing for Spring

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Yesterday we had a ‘teacher work day’, meaning that there was no school for the children. Instead we had the most wonderful day shopping and at the movies. The weather was incredible and the 3 of us had so much fun. They even enjoyed IKEA and we were in and out in record time having located storage boxes for my winter jumpers and new beach chairs for spring break. The highlight of the morning though was visiting their favorite H&M store!

Poppy was thrilled to find Sue’s top. It looks perfect with her new Zara shorts that she is wearing!

After H&M we headed to the movies to watch Cinderella – highly recommended – we loved it and I even shed a couple of tears!

For the casual day out and about I wore little makeup – a real treat in the spring sun – plenty of spf though of course!

Boots – Rag & Bone Newbury boots // Jeans – H&M // Tunic – J.Crew (25% off with SaleLove)

Today it’s back to work with a bump – none of us were rallying to get out of bed this morning. After blogging about it the other day I decided to wear my Mango top for the first time – I love it – I am wearing a US 8.

Boots – Rag & Bone Newbury (similar here on TheOutnet.com QUICK!) // Jeans – Zara // Top – Mango // Jacket – Mango (50% off on sale) // Bag – H&M // Sunglasses – Oliver Peoples Ria

At least the sun is still shining for us!

Attaining the boho 70s look with Mango and Zara

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Mango and Zara are two of my favorite high street stores. I say high street when in fact I do all my shopping with them online. Unfortunately we have no Mango in Atlanta and our Zara store is pretty small. I thought both of their AW14 collections were pretty lack luster – not much excited me. SS15 is a different story – I love so much of it!

Mango’s tops have always been great for me – I find their sizing is slightly more generous and consistent than Zara’s. They have always done great boho tops and I have a couple that I bought in Spain last year that I have just dug out – its been in the high 70s here so I can certainly start transitioning my closet for spring!

I love this blue printed top – perfect with flares or denim shorts.

This chiffon blouse is beautiful – I mentioned the other day that I love a good tunic – I feel much more comfortable without buttons peeking open.

I have this black top but have yet to wear it. It is just beautiful and great quality. It comes with cami underneath to preserve your modesty.

These crochet tops are not available in my size yet on the US site but they are on my wish list. I just love them – so feminine.

I’ve just ordered these to try the blue and the red. They remind me of Madewell tops that are twice the price. They are so pretty and feminine and I hope to wear them with jeans and my Ancient Greek sandals.

This dress also caught my eye – I don’t have a denim dress and I love the shape of this one. The pockets are a fabulous detail.

For those of us that love fringing you can’t miss out on this top. Terrible photo as it doesn’t show the fringe – but both sleeves have fringing. I love it as the front is plain so doesn’t draw attention to a larger chest.

As for Zara it has been their dresses that have caught my attention. Here’s a curve ball – definitely risking mutton BUT I think worn on vacation, by the beach, with sandals it could be an instant hit. The fact it is a ‘romper‘ means it’s short length is less of an issue.

I adore this dress with a stunning embroidered neckline. Really unique and it reminds me of the Kate Moss TopShop dresses that sold out in a heartbeat last year.

This red dress is a great alternative to all the creams around – it is really lovely in real life too.

Finally this dress is amazing value and I love the dropped waist. I’ll be ordering it soon.

With every item I look at I have a specific pair of sandals in mind that I want to wear. They are completely polarizing and I have even surprised myself. I think what I love about these gladiators is that they have thick straps – more ‘solid’ looking than most currently in stores with skinny straps. Now I know I am no Gisele but let me introduce you to my lust shoe for summer 2015 – the Stuart Weitzman Backview.

Today I headed back to our new TopShop. It is so exciting to finally have a bricks and mortar store here – I must be getting old though as my only complaint is the ridiculously loud music in there! I had a $10 gift card burning a hole in my pocket so today I put it towards the Hayden boyfriend jeans in ecru. I love them.

For my little shopping jaunt I wore my new jacket and jeans from J.Crew.

Sneakers – Stan Smiths // Jeans – J.Crew wide leg crops // T-shirt – ASOS // Jacket – J.Crew Regent blazer in linen // Sunglasses (on head!) – Oliver Peoples TheOutnet.com

On Friday night I was out for dinner with my Husband – we had so much fun, thankfully with few repercussions on Saturday morning!

Boots – Stuart Weitzman Highland // Dress – AllSaints

So do share – what has caught your eye now the new season is arriving fast and furiously?

It’s transitioning to spring

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I’ve already taken some of my large knits downstairs into my ‘storage closest’, and sadly my cashmere onesies will be heading there tonight not to be seen again till November 😦 I’m still keeping a few sweaters around as the weather here is completely unreliable right into May – only then can you guarantee heat daily. My daffodils know spring is blooming, we have deer roaming the neighborhood with their babies, and the blossom is beginning to appear. Spring makes me smile.

To acknowledge the warmer temperatures I’ve worn tees and jackets, and had my ankles on show for the past two days.

Shoes – Gucci // Jeans – J.Crew // Tee – AllSaints // Jacket – Mango (currently reduced by 60% in sale) // Bag – H&M