Skinny Cargo Combats

I have a pair of skinny combats in khaki (from Sainsbury's 3 or 4 years ago) that I adore. So much so they are wearing very thin and go baggy within 5 mins of putting them on. I care not for this latter fact but I do care for the fact that they are nearly breaking on the bum. A replacement pair is needed!



Here's how I have worn mine over the years.

Where to buy skinny combats today? I've found that they are hard to come by so I've selected the nearest I can find (which is basically a skinny jean with zips)!

Oasis via House of Fraser - £20 (in the sale)

Ralph Lauren via HOF - £160 (ouch at the price but swoon at the trousers)

New Look £24.99

Oasis £40

Mint Velvet £60

Topshop £40

Are you a fan of the combat? If budget were no issue I'd be having those RL ones in a heartbeat.

Fiona
xoxo

Double Denim

Today is a double denim kind of day. I adore this lighter denim shirt, although it's a bit tight (I am breathing in a lot). Skinny jeans from TK Maxx and boots from New Look (I cannot tell you how much I love these boots and how often I wear them)! (Currently in the sale but only size 7 or 9 left).

Inspiration for double denim - I love Pinterest for ideas

Here I am in all my double blue denim glory with the addition of a chunky aran cardigan because it's freezing here in the UK at the moment. Cardigan is James Lakeland via TK Maxx.

Just as I was hitting 'publish' on this post I got an email from Topshop with the headline

DoubleUp On Denim

"Get a fresh dose of denim. We go beyond trusty skinny jeans with grungy denim shirts, collared jackets and throw on dresses. New season washes and stand-out prints will set the bar. Layer up your staple shirt under dresses or dungarees for a new take on double denim"

I feel all on trend!

Double yes to double denim or double no?

Fiona

xoxo

I hate my hair

Well that's a bit of a dramatic title but I am not happy. I've not been happy with my hair for a very very very long time. In my mid 30's I dyed it with blonde highlights and I loved it (hated the regrowth and what it did to the condition of my hair) but I absolutely loved the colour (as did my husband who has a thing for blonde hair). This was from 2009 (terrible scanned pic sorry).

7 day round up

In my quest to wear everything I own and to not repeat (as best as I can) here is a round up of what I've been wearing. It started out so well with 'dresses for work' but I soon got bored of that once the novelty wore off/I ran out of dresses and the weather changed to cold, wet and windy!

A trip to H&M

I popped into town with the family to pick up some rugby boots for my youngest but they got side tracked and so did I .. in H&M. I rarely go shopping these days due mainly to lack of money but also time. I prefer to do my shopping online but after yesterday I am going to have to make some money and time because I missed it.

I knew H&M (as all retailers do) would have dregs left, it's weeks since the sales started but I also knew that a few little bargains would catch my eye. And catch they did.

I took in 8 items, a mix of dresses, jeans and a jumper. All in the sale and all super cheap.

Spring Summer 2015 Fashion Trends

It's hard to even think about the warmer weather when it's blowing a hooley out there right now. It's dark in the mornings when I leave to do the school run and an open fire is lit every night without fail. But needs must and I do need to 'think ahead' for the Spring/Summer.

I am a firm believer that 'trends' are no longer 'trends' - they are just repackaged 'themes' we've all seen before. I think anything goes as long as you're happy with what you are wearing.

However, as a duty to my readers I am hereby giving you what the 'experts' say is 'in' for the seasons ahead.  (All images via Metro via Getty)

Crazy 80% off at ASOS

Seriously, when these guys have a sale they have a GOOD sale! I have (thus so far) ignored all the sales because there were too many, I didn't have a bottomless pit of cash to spend (I still don't) but my oh my what do we have here!

TOP TIP FOR BROWSING THE ASOS WEBSITE
ASOS is huge, it's massive and there are literally 10's of thousands of items. So use the filters. Start with the item range you want to look at ie dresses or tops and then go for your size and finally do the price slider. I always go down to £50 and sort then by price low to high.

ENTER THIS ASOS DISCOUNT CODE at the checkout - GIMME10

Here's what's in my basket now - am I naughty enough to checkout?

Swing dress in the tall range - £10

Relaxed coat - £28

Silver Trainers - £50

Summer jumper - £8 (where with a vest top under)

Yellow skirt - £9.50

Fan of ASOS or too much and too busy to use the site? I do wish websites would have a filter that said 'don't show me X items or Y'. For example, I'll NEVER IN THIS WORLD EVER want to look at maternity or petite clothes!

Fiona
xoxo

Jumper dresses

This is the perfect time of year to put on your jumper dresses. Dress them up with heels as I have done or dress them down with trainers and/or boots.

I have seen these kind of dresses worn with denim shirts underneath but when I tried that look earlier it looked too bulky and weird. My solution to this problem is a faux shirt collar.


New Look Denim Bib Collar - £8.99

New Look White Shirt Bib Collar - £8.99

River Island White Shirt Collar Bib - £10

River Island Denim Shirt Collar Bib - £10

I have been assured by all the ladies on the Avenue 57 Facebook group that they work a treat, they do not pop out from under your jumper or dress and they are the accessory to have this season (who am I to argue with the experts)!

Back to the jumper dress. I forget about mine, I don't know why and yet when I wear it I get lots of lovely compliments and I feel really good in it! MUST BUY MORE and wear!

Here are some bargain dresses/jumper dresses from online today

ASOS Camel Jumper Dress - £35

ASOS Navy Jumper Dress - £40

Boden Hotpotch Jersey Dress - £69

Topshop Grey Ribbed Jumper Dress - £42

House of Fraser Pied A Terre Jumper Dress was £89 now £44

I've set myself a little challenge. I am going to wear EVERYTHING I own before I buy ANYTHING new .. I have a lot of clothes and it's time to start wearing them all. I'm also starting to keep work clothes for work and dress down casual for home. So far this week I've worn 2 dresses and it's a lovely moment when I fling off the dress and wear my faux gym gear when I get home!

Do you own a jumper dress? When was the last time you wore yours? What about the bib? Good idea?

Fiona
XOXO

Scarf storage solutions

I own a lot of scarves. I have always owned a lot of scarves. I own more scarves now though since opening up a scarf shop! Where to store them has always been an issue.

How do you store your scarves?

I have one similar to this and it wasn't this cheap but this looks like a total bargain:

Here's mine in action

My oversized scarves don't fit in that well so they're just folded nicely

And these are the ones that I no longer wear regularly but don't want to throw away. I have them folded at the back of my wardrobe now.

I am NEVER without a scarf in the winter - EVER!

Do you wear scarves? How many do you have and how do you store them?

Fiona
xoxo

Blazers

I have a theory ... any outfit can be jazzed up with the simple addition of a blazer. I bought mine for £15 (reduced from £100) at House of Fraser in early December. I struggle with blazers because I have long arms.

Inspiration from my favourite source - Pinterest! I adore the top right of shirt/jumper/blazer. Will copy that next week!