The oversized shirt

This is a really lovely shirt, and all the more lovely for costing only £2.90 in last month's shopping spree. In the charity shop there were three of these all together which looked like a bit of a wardrobe clear out if ever I've seen one. This colourway is what clinched the deal as the other two were a bit pale and washed out looking. My school uniform was maroon and gold and I think this is the first time I've chosen to wear this combo since then - and that was more than a year or two ago as you can imagine. 

I don't often wear oversized shirts as I feel a bit swamped in them, and that's because I teeter on the brink of the petite/average height range at 5 foot 5 inches. Neither do I have those long beanpole legs which give the illusion of height. I'm blessed with footballers legs which is why you won't see many miniskirts or summer shorts being showcased on my blog. Being realistic about your shape is good, I think, as it helps you define your body type so that you can choose the best clothes to suit that type. If I were driven to give the illusion of the perfect figure I'd be in dresses or palazzo pants with high heels all the time, adding a belt to draw the eye to my narrowest part and I might even look tall(er) too.

But my blog is about the real me, wearing all sorts of clothes and shoes regardless of whether they're right for my shape and height. One of my major love affairs is with my brogues. Once in a while my passion comes into fashion (did you like that?) and this week I saw a magazine feature saying we all need some mannish brogues for our A/W15 look - hurrah, I'm ready! Today, just for a change however, and because I don't want to be too predictable, I've donned my gold leather loafers to finish off the ensemble. I know not everyone would be wearing gold shoes as day wear, but hey, I'm not everyone! I continued the glitzy theme with this sparkly gem necklace, and the gold trimmed floral ring in an art deco style was another good tie-in. The huge silver disc ring was a great find in a charity shop for the crazy sum of £3 and has already been useful in previous posts. And to finish off, I added the beautiful brown leather handbag which is a good contrast to all the sparkle. 

The jury's out as to whether this is a very me outfit. I really wanted to showcase this shirt and think I may have to style it up differently next time. I'm going to think a while longer to see what comes up. Watch this space...

Shirt: charity shop. Trousers: H&M. Loafers: eBay. Necklace and rings: charity shop. Handbag: charity shop. Sunglasses: Quay Australia. 

Vintage blouse

 

Pink, as you will know, is so not one of my colours, but I'm really entering into the spirit of things to get over this. First there were the powder pink brogues (as seen here), and now this wham-bam, eye-popping fuchsia blouse with frills, bells and whistles.

At the beginning of the day I felt a bit conspicuous, wondering if my skin looked too washed out in this bright pink top, but by the end of business I was quite at home, owning the look, as they say. I think my reticence in wearing pink harps back to my childhood when I had bright ginger hair and was told (by whom, I can't remember) that redheads shouldn't wear pink or red as it clashes with our hair colour. I clearly took this to heart and have avoided these for years until now. The birth of my alter ego, the fashionista who's been lying in wait ready to strut her stuff, has been quite liberating, allowing me to try out all sorts of things including the pink stuff. I also recently bought a red skirt for this winter and am looking forward to some cold weather to give it a whirl too. 

The beautiful blouse came from a vintage, charity shop in Exeter. Imagine my delight at vintage clothes and charity shop prices all rolled into one heavenly retail opportunity! My daughter Sasha and I headed in different directions seeking out our own treats. After 20 minutes of scouring the racks I took myself off to the changing room and the fun began. Such a lot looked promising until I tried it on, but that's all part of the game. Eventually this blouse and a few other prized goodies rose to the top of the pile and I was done. All will be revealed in due course. The day was off to a good start, and the end result has already been featured in my previous post Shopping, haircut and a fabulous fashionista (as seen here.)  After today I've already had a few other ideas about styling up this pretty blouse with other separates in my wardrobe which I really can't wait to try out. It's like I've opened the floodgates to a whole new realm of creativity thanks to this inclusion of an off-limits area of the colour wheel. I feel like I've got a whole lot of catching up to do. What fun!

Blouse: vintage, charity shop. Skirt: H&M. Shoes: TK Maxx. Ring: gift. Bangle: gift. Pearls: charity shop. Sunglasses: Quay Australia.

Back to nature

This outfit really brings a smile to my face. The top and trousers look as if they were made to match and yet were lucky finds in the Exmouth charity shops. Perhaps they had come from the same source, who knows? But as far as I'm concerned it would be an outrage to split them up. Where would Ant be without Dec or Morcambe without Wise? Well these are just as much fun to me. It almost looks like these beautiful butterflies are being drawn south to the nectar of the floral trousers. The whole thing is whimsical, romantic and a dream to wear. And how wonderful to be still on the beach in the morning sunshine at the end of September. These islands are still basking in the late Indian summer sun and we are all pretty happy bunnies to be blessed with this bonus bit of weather in the UK.

Continuing with the whimsical theme I felt had to add my Jessica necklace which ties in so well with its delicate print Liberty skirt. And it was a no-brainer to add the yellow watch and these rings to this ensemble to keep everything keyed in to the same colourway. The finishing touch are these bright blue kitten heels which give a bit of class to the outfit. It would have been so easy to go to my default setting and find a pair of brogues to complement this palette, but sometimes you've got to push out of your comfort zone. The result was worth it. Don't you think?

Trousers: Topshop (charity shop). Top: New Look (charity shop). Necklace: Charlie Dodge. Shoes: charity shop. Watch: charity shop. Yellow ring: Martin James. Blue ring: charity shop. Rose gold bangle: Kate Spade New York. Sunglasses: Quay Australia. 

Purple Hobbs dress

The sun is getting lower in the sky, but our Indian summer continues and I'm making the most of it. Let's bin the beige and have fun with colour is my motto and today more than ever my look typifies this. For those who are regular followers, you will know that orange is a favourite colour of mine, but this marriage of orange and purple is just amazing - it's a real wake-up call for the eyeballs! I'm always trying out different styles and today's shift dress from Hobbs was in danger of being a bit safe, too conventional for my liking. However I think the injection of the orange accessories has done the trick. 

Hobbs is not one of my usual ports of call when I'm away shopping, but I was lucky enough to find the dress in one of my regular charity shops last year. It was in very good condition, pre-loved as they say and certainly cherished by the owner who had sent it to the dry cleaners before selling. When you consider how much that costs too, it's quite a generous act to make before you donate and send off to it's next life. Thank you to the lady in question, I do appreciate it and promise to love and care for the frock too.

My slouchy handbag was a gift from my friend Bo who lives in Portugal, and my sandals are from New Zealand, so I'm sporting a very international outfit today. My husband and I spent a month in NZ earlier this year travelling across the two islands by Camper van living the life of a couple of ageing hippies. We loved it. What an beautiful country! The driving was easy and the views were breathtaking. It seemed like every corner we took opened up into another fantastic vista, and at times we felt we could have been part of a film set. One day we were just driving along and came across this outlet village. I insisted we stop, even though my husband had no idea what an outlet village was. However, he was the more successful of the two of us that day with his finds of a soft cashmere sweater and some striped beach shorts. We walked the length of the village as I dodged into shop after shop trying to redress the balance - where were my goodies? The final shop was where I found these cute orange leather sandals. I liked the metal rings in the various shades of golds and could see they would be a very useful addition to my summer wardrobe. And now every time I wear them I am reminded of all of our happy memories of our wonderful holiday. 

Dress: Hobbs (charity shop). Bag: Portugal. Shoes: New Zealand. Necklace: old. Bracelets: charity shop. Brass bangle: Rose Cecil. Large and small orange rings: Sam Williams. Small multi col ring: old. Sunglasses: Quay Australia.

Abba or the Sound of Music?

Loving these burgundy heeled brogues.

This watch wouldn't look out of place in an advert in Vogue.

Today's title suggestions are from workmates as to which film my outfit was inspired by. I did give a rendition of "A lonely goat herd" voicing my opinion and think I might have to seek out some Lederhosen next. Isn't it grand to spark up a conversation that just for a moment lifts us out of the humdrum and the paperwork, and puts a smile on our faces? I kinda feel I'm doing my bit for our little community.

I'm delighted to say that the new shoes have given birth to this ensemble, as I've been waiting for the perfect footwear to offset this skirt for years. Yes, really years. This absolute gem of a skirt was an incredibly rash purchase many moons ago and cost me more money than I can bear to say. A proper designer piece, it hailed me when I was fresh off the island and prone to commit the odd, excited, over-the-top retail sin (thank goodness these days are over!) Much as I may have regretted the cost, I've never regretted the skirt. The colours are perfect for my wardrobe and the cotton lawn is light and has a slight sheen, that reeks style to me. There's a full separate slip in the aubergine tone too. Today however, I almost dressed it up in quite a different way, by donning my black 1950's style net underskirt. It did look amazing, but I decided for an ordinary work day it was probably a bit too much, and going by the earlier reactions I think it was a good call. Maybe for an evening out it would be a great move...

The blouse is having it's first outing too. I bought it on eBay a couple of winter's ago, then promptly found it too difficult to place. Looking at it now, I can see lots of opportunities and am delighted at how it looks. I suppose not everyone would see sequins as everyday wear, but working in the art world seems to be the perfect let out clause. And my final mention has to go to the beautiful watch. I've seen sparkly watches like this in the magazines and never for one moment imagined that I might find such a lovely specimen in the glass case of a charity shop. I find it hard to imagine that someone wouldn't want it, would even consider getting rid of it. But hey, what am I saying? I'm so, so pleased that it ended up abandoned in that little glass case - I love it!

Skirt: Philosophy, by Alberta Ferretti. Blouse:Jacques Vert. Belt: charity shop. Shoes: charity shop. Handbag: charity shop. Watch: charity shop. Yellow ring: Martin James. Silver ring: charity shop. 

Weekend in Exmouth

Exmouth seafront on Sunday morning was a hive of activity with these kitesurfers' sails zooming across the sky. We stopped and took some snaps of the bright and colourful display. It looked great fun, a real adrenlin rush.

This blue ring was a find in a charity shop in Exeter. Next time you're wondering if it's worth having a look in your local charity shop, remember this little beauty.

My daughter Sasha and I recently spent a lovely weekend in Exmouth, someplace neither of us had previously visited. We shopped (surprise), ate out and had a lovely morning wandering along the promenade where we came across these amazing kite surfers. The sun shone, and their sails danced across the pale blue sky making a fantastic display. Exmouth was teaming all sorts of exercise addicts - we saw a group out rollerblading and a cycling club was in evidence too. All this fresh air seemed to enliven and invigorate the residents. We also watched a lady emerge from the sea after her morning dip and I did feel a pang of envy as it had been a little while since my last sea swim on the islands.

Anyway, back to that shopping. My blue biker jacket was probably one of my most exciting purchases during my trip away. I seem to have a theme emerging with this shopping fest as jackets keep turning up which are just too good to miss. In addition to this one and my previously featured black leather jacket I also bought a brown bomber jacket, but more of that another time...The obvious styling for the blue jacket was of course to don a pair of jeans and flats for a modern biker look. I haven't tried out the rock chick look before so it did feel like dressing up in a very different way - I like it! 

The jeans were a new (recycled) purchase and nearly broke the bank at £1. In stretch denim with a retro snow wash finish these were allegedly two sizes too big for me, but I knew they were worth trying on just in case. They fit like a glove and the slight looseness in the waist was remedied by my two tone suede belt which adds a great pop of colour. The psychedelic print shirt was the other perfect retro piece needed to compliment the outfit. I finished the get up with my old favourite orange perspex necklace and some rings that I'd found in the local charity shops. This was a fun look, one I'll be sporting again.

Jacket: TK Maxx. Jeans: charity shop. Shirt: eBay. Shoes: Office. Belt: Benetton. Necklace: old. Rings: charity shop. Sunglasses: Quay Australia. Handbag: TK Maxx.