Tag Archives: fashion advice

Fantasy shopping.

I know what you’re going to say. I just shop, shop, shop and most of the time I figure out a way to get what I am lusting after – whether it be through saving a few pennies or selling some fabulous items that just don’t get worn as much as they deserve to be. I do, however, have a threshold of what I consider to be an okay amount to pay for an item. It may seem a little warped that I will happily spend $500-$600 on a pair of boots and yet wince at the thought of paying $300 for a pair of jeans, or more than $200 for a jacket. It probably comes down to me accepting how fickle I can be. My style has evolved radically over the past 18 months and I expect it to continue to do so. It’s dangerous territory then to fork out mega bucks on items of clothes that I may shun to the back of the closet next year. My Rag & Bone, Marant and Acne boots still make me giggle with pleasure every time I lift the lid off the box. These will always be in my style ‘comfort zone’ – so I can splurge happily with no remorse.

I love to create a fantasy lists. If money were no object what would I buy? As I was browsing the other night I stumbled upon more than a few items that set my heart a flutter.

Of course the list had to include some leopard print. This Jérome Dreyfuss purse is stunning – but for now I’m happy to make do with my Boden Canonbury clutch (p.s. it’s the last day of the Boden 20% diminishing discount tomorrow!).

What greater indulgence is there than a ridiculous Louis Vuitton scarf that will be worn again and again – just the $800 then? I am in love with this print. This is something that eventually I may be persuaded by – one day.

I don’t wear pumps/courts nearly enough to justify these – but if money were no object – these YSL Janis Escarpin pumps would be mine.

Finally, for now, I have always wanted some perfect leather trousers. Of course they need to be Balmain. Just the $4,560 then.

I expect I’ll be creating more secret compilations like this now football season has started! What’s on your lust list? How would you fill your closet if you won the lottery?

It’s still hot, hot, hot here so yesterday I opted for shorts again. I had a lovely lunch with a handsome man.

Shoes – Vince Nina // Shorts – J.Crew Factory // Jacket – Zara (old) // T-shirt – Gap

After the boys of summer have gone.

18 Replies

Labor weekend is traditionally the ‘end’ of summer – though we get at least another month of summer-like weather. Having said that we have woken up this morning to torrential rain – the garden is a mud pit – so much for our pool plans today. Hey ho, we’ve still had a fun packed weekend to say farewell to summer with a bang.

On Friday I caught up with a friend for lunch who I haven’t seen for probably eight years or so. We used to work together, then she moved to D.C. to study law. It was great fun to see where the years have taken us and we talked and talked as you can imagine! I can’t wait to make it a regular lunch date.

Trousers – Zara harems (old) // Shoes – Zara // T-shirt – Gap (old) // Scarf – J.Crew (old) // Bag – Boden clutch

Saturday started early. Every year on Labor weekend the weirdest people flock to Atlanta. I have a strange affinity for these weird folk. They are the Dragoncon delegates. Downtown Atlanta becomes populated by Klingons, wookiees and stormtroopers for the weekend. Fantastic fun.

Hugh wasn’t that impressed by the early start:

Darth Vader must have heard about the Death Star – he looked a little dejected.

I didn’t get a full outfit image that day – I assure you I didn’t dress up – though I’m tempted for next year:) I wore the same as here though – the grey Asos t-shirt dress – with my Golden Goose sneakers (similar here).

On Saturday evening we went out for a wonderful dinner with friends. It was a long, lovely, indulgent evening with lots of great conversation. To commemorate Labor weekend I wore all white.

Boots – Canvas Rag & Bone Newbury boots // Shorts – Zara skort // T-shirt – AllSaints vest (old) // Jacket – Zara (old)

These days Poppy and Hugh can’t resist getting involved in the photo taking – budding bloggers I tell you – though Hugh ain’t that impressed by his sister trying to steal the limelight:)

Last night we headed to the Braves game. It’s such a fun thing to do with the children now they can sit through nine innings. The music, the games, the food all take precedent over the actual baseball game – a good thing really as we lost. Poppy is now an expert at gaining enough attention to get us on the big screen with the FanCam – twice last night! I really need to make more of an effort for Braves games with the amount of exposure she is getting us! We were even lucky enough to have a free post game concert with Big & Rich. Baseball really is the best value when it comes to family entertainment – fours hours of relaxation and fun for $10 each!

Top – Boden Breton // Shorts – J.Crew (old) // Sneakers – Converse (old)

So today we may have to change plans – the rain is still falling. I fancy a good movie day curled up with my gorgeous family – sounds good to me.

Changing diets.

17 Replies

By diet I don’t mean diet as in losing weight, I mean changing the nutritional content and fabric of my daily food intake. I have to say I’m always very skeptical about diets that remove items or restrict foods – like the Atkins diet etc. – but I’ve recently been reading a lot about food intolerance. As a scientist I have to say some of the data and reasoning is quite compelling. So I thought I’d give it a try. After speaking to my doctor about it she recommended trying the Virgin diet where you remove gluten, dairy, eggs, peanuts, soy, corn and sugar from your diet, then add each one back into the mix to see which, if any you react too. Our food can impact all sorts of things – obviously our physical health, but also our mood and energy levels. Even though it sounds a bit fadish I thought I’d give it a go – nothing ventured, nothing gained.

I’m quite lazy, though not terribly unhealthy, when it comes to food – a quick bowl of pasta for example. I lack inspiration. One of the unexpected positive effects of trying this diet is that I have to plan my meals in advance, meaning I am much more prepared at meal time, ultimately resulting in far more enjoyment from cooking and eating.

I’ve only been following the plan for 3 days and yesterday I was EXHAUSTED. I could barely keep my eyes open and I started to question the alleged benefits. Today, however, I feel AMAZING. I have so much energy and feel so alert – and that was at 7am this morning. I’m starting to believe there may be something to this food intolerance stuff.

For you nay sayers who claim it is boring – ok it’s only been 3 days – but I am really enjoying eating fabulous fresh fruits and veg and great lean meat, and I’m tasting all the flavor. I’m using Gwyneth Paltrow’s “It’s All Good“ (recommended by a friend – thanks S!) for inspiration. I can’t say enough great things about this book – I always think of Gwyneth as being a bit up herself and self-righteous – but in the book she comes across as a lovely, down to earth mom – dare I say just like us? All thanks to great editing and PR I’m sure – but still I am really enjoying this book.

I’d love to hear if any of you have tried eliminating certain foods from your diet. How did you feel? Did you stick with it? Do you think it’s a fad?

Another benefit is that I already feel less bloated – my clothes are a little looser already. Apparently it can also make your skin look years younger…we’ll see.

Trousers – Zara palazzo trousers (old) // Top – Zara long sleeved tee (old) // Shoes – Tory Burch Emmy sandals (old)

T-shirt – Asos (similar here) // Shorts – DvF TheOutnet.com (old) // Shoes – Marks & Spencer (old)

The VMAs with more crass than class.

25 Replies

Did you watch the VMAs last night? Lordy I am getting old.

First Lady Gaga – SO over her – in fact so over her I have nothing to say.

Okay so now Miley. Twitter lit up with her performance. All I can say is it was pathetic, disturbing and humiliating. Who the hell told her in rehearsal that ‘sure Miley – it’s great – just grab your crotch and stick your tongue out one more time‘? Someone needs to give her a good slap, and all those around her for encouraging that kind of tripe. When Robin Thicke joined her for Blurred Lines I was SO disappointed – he gave all the critics of the song all the ammunition they needed. Why grind your groin against Hannah Montana’s rear Robin? I was crying into my Earl Grey with disappointment.

Then Kanye. WTF? Great t.v. NOT. You couldn’t see him, nor could you hear the song for all the censorship bleeping over it.

Thank the Lord for Justin. A stellar performance from an artist that takes his craft seriously. Great singing, great dancing – what I call proper entertainment.

I don’t think there was one presenter I understood – lots of weird grunts and hand gestures – oh and inappropriate Amber Alert references, not something I think should be made light of. And then there was Katy’s grill, and Taylor and Selena trying to look hot and make Harry jealous. Just uuurgh – it’s giving me the creeps recounting it.

By then it was gone 10pm and I headed to bed. I recorded the show thinking Poppy would love to watch it – but I fear most of it will be fast forwarded to avoid corrupting her innocence. In hindsight I don’t think it has to do with my age – it’s more to do with the ‘entertainment’ industry’s poor judgement and inability to ‘entertain’. Whatever happened to good old singing and dancing – Justin needs to teach them all a lesson or two. What do you think?

As I step down from my soap box here’s what I’ve been wearing over the past couple of days…

Dress – Asos t-shirt dress // Sandals – Steve Madden (really old!) // Necklace – Target (old)

Jeans – Gap ankle skimmers (sale buys) // T-shirt – H&M (old) // Scarf – Boden (last season now just $14!) // Sandals – Zara (old) // Necklace – H&M (recent but not online)

Black and grey.

23 Replies

It’s been a hectic week involving a fun night out with some moms from school – I love how diverse and fun our school is, we’re really lucky. Not quite sure how Friday has arrived so quickly this week.

I was up early this morning for carpooling duty so quite literally needed something to throw on. This Zara sweatshirt dress (old) was ideal, worn with my Golden Goose. I have a thing about cold shoulders in dresses and tops – I love them.

So regarding my wish list the other day – I may have slightly misled you. I actually ordered a couple of the Zara items – one because I’d seen it go in and out of stock so I was worried it may disappear if I delayed, and the other – well – just because I love it.

The first is the pink cardigan, ordered just because I wanted it, and I do love it. This is a medium so it is generous for Zara. I can’t wait to wear it with a simple white t-shirt, with boyfriend jeans or buttoned up with skinny jeans.

Next up is the knitted duffle. This keeps disappearing from stock so as soon as I saw the medium reappear I ordered it – justifying the early purchase by using the gift card that my father-in-law gave me for my birthday. He knows me so well. Thanks Mike – it’s a great birthday present – I love my knitted jacket:) Just be warned if you are buying for warmth this isn’t lined throughout. The sheepskin is just trim around the edges and in the hood – but perfectly snuggly for Atlanta fall weather.

Finally my ASOS dresses arrived. Now these are perfect and they were a great price – but the fabric of the black and grey is slightly different – I need to check the labels to see how composition differs. These are both a US 6 and the black is definitely shorter than the grey. I love the cut – great flirty t-shirt dresses, perfect with sneakers. They will be a staple to come through the mild Fall weather we have here. I think they’ll be great dressed up a bit with a scarf too, and the black could definitely be dressed up with heels and a great necklace for a night out. (Tip – always google for discount codes before buying on ASOS – there is normally one floating around!).

Have you checked anything off your ‘wish list’ yet?

Poppy's Style

My blog about fashion, family, friends and fun.

Tag Archives: fashion advice

Fantasy shopping.

Shoes – Vince Nina // Shorts – J.Crew Factory // Jacket – Zara (old) // T-shirt – Gap

After the boys of summer have gone.

Trousers – Zara harems (old) // Shoes – Zara // T-shirt – Gap (old) // Scarf – J.Crew (old) // Bag – Boden clutch

Hugh wasn’t that impressed by the early start:

Darth Vader must have heard about the Death Star – he looked a little dejected.

Boots – Canvas Rag & Bone Newbury boots // Shorts – Zara skort // T-shirt – AllSaints vest (old) // Jacket – Zara (old)

Top – Boden Breton // Shorts – J.Crew (old) // Sneakers – Converse (old)

Changing diets.

Trousers – Zara palazzo trousers (old) // Top – Zara long sleeved tee (old) // Shoes – Tory Burch Emmy sandals (old)

T-shirt – Asos (similar here) // Shorts – DvF TheOutnet.com (old) // Shoes – Marks & Spencer (old)

The VMAs with more crass than class.

Dress – Asos t-shirt dress // Sandals – Steve Madden (really old!) // Necklace – Target (old)

Jeans – Gap ankle skimmers (sale buys) // T-shirt – H&M (old) // Scarf – Boden (last season now just $14!) // Sandals – Zara (old) // Necklace – H&M (recent but not online)

Black and grey.

Shoes – Vince Nina // Shorts – J.Crew Factory // Jacket – Zara (old) // T-shirt – Gap

Related articles

Share this:

Like this:

Trousers – Zara harems (old) // Shoes – Zara // T-shirt – Gap (old) // Scarf – J.Crew (old) // Bag – Boden clutch

Hugh wasn’t that impressed by the early start:

Darth Vader must have heard about the Death Star – he looked a little dejected.

Boots – Canvas Rag & Bone Newbury boots // Shorts – Zara skort // T-shirt – AllSaints vest (old) // Jacket – Zara (old)

Top – Boden Breton // Shorts – J.Crew (old) // Sneakers – Converse (old)

Related articles

Share this:

Like this:

Trousers – Zara palazzo trousers (old) // Top – Zara long sleeved tee (old) // Shoes – Tory Burch Emmy sandals (old)

T-shirt – Asos (similar here) // Shorts – DvF TheOutnet.com (old) // Shoes – Marks & Spencer (old)

Related articles

Share this:

Like this:

Dress – Asos t-shirt dress // Sandals – Steve Madden (really old!) // Necklace – Target (old)

Jeans – Gap ankle skimmers (sale buys) // T-shirt – H&M (old) // Scarf – Boden (last season now just $14!) // Sandals – Zara (old) // Necklace – H&M (recent but not online)

Related articles

Share this:

Like this:

Related articles

Share this:

Like this: