Look, Know

An Outfit of Sorts

Erm I'm jumping on a train back to Manchester today, and my outfit consists of what was on my floor at the time. Bad choices? Anyway its on my back now, and I've got to leave the house, go to a lecture, and then get a train, and then get off train and go straight to dinner with some lovely people, and drink some nice lovely beer or something. Ace. Now how about I wear something vaguely better than this? Different colours perhaps? Good job I'm not training as a textile designer or anything, where colour judgement is really important...!! Who's going to employ me?! Ha. Anyway. I apologise for this outfit, if it offends you, but I still took a picture and plonked it on here to keep me in the habit.

Here's my new thing; to not wear anything that covers up my collar bone and neck. I'm slowly realising, that even though I love wearing buttoned up blouses, and high necked dresses with cute collars/pussy bows, it just doesn't always look right. I went through a long phase of really covering up my top half; long hair covering my face, tops and dresses that came right up to, or covered my neck. Just a little more scoop of the neck, I think makes all the difference. I usually hate this sort of dressing mentality — "I'm pear shaped so I have to wear frilly blouses to draw attention to my top half or floaty hemlines to draw the eye away from said hefty hips" or something like that. I just made that advice up, so don't hold it against me, — mainly because it's usually a load of body scrutiny inducing bollocks, which makes people feel nervous about wearing the right clothes. But on this occasion, a little flash of the neck and collar bone, goes a long way in not looking like a matronly bust defying matron, if you get what I mean. I'll always love a 60's crimplene dress, with a bias roll necked collar, but I'll perhaps keep this one style rule — others can go in the bin (take note: I don't care if I'm petite I'll wear a floaty maxi skirt if I want to!) — at the back of my mind if I make any new purchases of tops/blouses. Just a thought.

(isn't the floor really interesting?)

Cardigan: Gap

Top: Whistles

Jeans: Swap Shop

Shoes: Office (sale stock)

On Location

I'm skiving the studio today, and concentrating on some reading/research instead. It's just occurred to me, that I have never done a post with me wearing this dress. It's made of that great fabric I love, crimplene, so it retains its structure, and has the cutest crocheted collar. I bought this dress when I was about 17/18, like most of the vintage 60's dresses I have acquired. And also like many of  my vintage dresses at the moment, it's got a few holes in the seams.

Some of my favourite dresses that I have simply worn over and over, repaired and repaired, are quite literally, ripped at the seams, with some totally beyond any further repair. Which is a shame. SO this dress has only two medium holes in the seams, so I promise I will make time, and put in some effort to repair this dress properly (and try not to walk around with holes in my clothes all the time — which I do too often).

Dress: Vintage via Ebay

Shoes: Office

 

Comfort Zone

Ashiya is very ill, so lets send her telepathic love. 

It's my pretend birthday very soon, and my actual one a week later. So this pretty new Erfurt scarf is my birthday present to myself. I love the colours, and its little pom poms are ace. It's warm, it's wool, and it's colourful, ticks all my boxes.

I'm wearing my mother's cardigan today, to feel extra cosy. And I'm wearing semi pretty shoes - I forgot I had brogues stored away too! (when you're unable to wear all your pretty shoes, you don't want them in full view as a painful reminder). So hurrah for sensible-nice-looking shoes. My heart lifts.

Dress: vintage

Cardigan: Hand me down

Tights: M&S

Shoes: Office

Scarf: Erfurt 

 

Nearly in Heels again

Ok I'm off out, and I thought I'd go Manchester style and actually dress up. I've had this coat, since I was 14, my sister bought it for a fancy dress outfit - I decided it was much too cool to be left in the wardrobe and nicked it! Ashiya and Helena are playing tonight... and she wanted to wear this coat as a dress (it is actually a dress) so I'm supposed to be bringing it down with me, but she just said that it doesn't matter anymore, so I'm inclined to wear it with this dress I'm wearing! 

These are the pretty shoes I got in the sale that were too small, and now the size up is too big.. Annoying, but nothing some insoles won't cure. I just love the golden heel... Sadly, after putting these on, I'm not too sure if my feet can take it - another day of printing today, and wandering around the V&A yesterday means my feet are a little more than overworked. So I may have to re think this outfit, shoes wise. Hmm.

Have a lovely thursday evening whatever you're upto!! 

Coat: Stolen

Dress: Vintage via Oxfam Originals

Tights: M&S

Shoes: Office (sale stock)

 

 

(p.s I think my make up is all wrong, and I'm definitely going to change my lipstick)

EDIT: Here's the full outfit

Colour Me In Pink

Morning!! Look at me, posting first thing! I love this pink cashmere jumper, it's the best £20 I ever spent this winter, I wear it all the time over everything, and it doesn't bulk up, and squeezes back into your bag easy.

Ok I didn't wear any fancy shoes today, but I'm going to be walking some, plus it's an excuse to wear wooly orange socks. I'm going to Ashiya's gig tonight so I might put on a fancy dress... if I do, I may just take a photo for this blog's pleasure.

It's a bit of a shitty weather day here in London town, so wearing lots of pink and orange is going to keep me brightened up I'm hoping...! Have a good day!

Jumper - TK Maxx

Dress - H&M

Socks - GAP

Shoes - Office

 

Day in the Dye Lab, Silk Screen Printing

Ok so today's outfit needed to be practical - fannying about with chemicals, hot liquids and screens, requires hair being tied back, grubby clothes that you don't mind turning pink, long sleeves and hard wearing shoes. I'm sporting my leopard print ear bags here too. These fantastic contraptions are basically clip on ear muffs, so no need for the head band - genius! You can therefore wear them under hats, under long hair unnoticed, or as in today's outfit brazenly visible! All the while keeping your ears very very toasty. Thumbs up for anyone who gets cold easily or hates wearing hats.

I'm also super happy with these boots I got in the sale at Office. Since a back injury last year, has started to re occur, the broken foot last autumn, and also relocating to a very busy city;  I've had to change the way I dress drastically. So owning a pair of boots that I can walk in, that have tread soles and support my feet is suddenly really important. Carrying a collection of possessions everyday, doesn't mean using a Mary Poppins handbag, that has "back strain" written all over it, anymore, it now means using a back pack at all times. ( I haven't worn a back pack since I was at 14 at school!)

I suddenly find myself, with all these shoe boxes of very high heels, and pretty shoes that don't stand up to pavements, all of which I don't particularly have any inclination to wear at the moment (pretty shoes + backpacks = bad combination). Hopefully, summer will come around, and I'll shed my boots and socks and I'll get back into mid heels, and slowly I'll get around to wearing gorgeous shoes again daily. But right now, I'm happy walking pain free, and feeling invincible with a back pack and free hands!  I can just about manage a low heel in the evening at the moment, which is hilarious as I bought some more pretty shoes at Christmas that I don't even want to wear outside!!

Well enough about my languishing shoe and bag collection, that's not getting any wear.. and hopefully this work outfit is not too dull for you... Tomorrow will be better - I might even slip on some 2inch heels!! Scary!

Top and Dress: H&M

Tights: M&S

Socks: Topshop (stocking filler)

Boots: Office

 

Back In The City

Ok, so it's not the best outfit, but it's a start, to get posting again at least! I've just grabbed these shoes, which are the black version of a pair I own already, in the sale. I had been umming and ahhing about getting them, because the silver pair were just amazing during the summer (and bought at a reduced price) but couldn't face paying full price just because they were the black version; and now finally, they have been reduced from the ridiculous price tag of £67. I can see myself wearing these a lot, which justifies buying two of the same pair of shoe I think. Annoyingly, I had also bought a pair of patent mary jane pumps online, and it turned out they were too small, even though I know I've been a size 36 in Office shoes for years. So then I had to return them in store and get the guy at the till to find an available size 37, and now they've arrived — they are in fact too big and slip off my feet big time. Bugger. What's a girl to do?

 

This wool skirt is a black version of a brown tweed skirt I own, and was originally Ashiya's, and she has very kindly given it to me, as she never wears it apparently! Great! I now have the perfect *go to* skirt that will go with anything, and will get me through the week of sleep walk dressing — you know when you're still in bed and you're so tired you drag yourself to have a shower and are quickly making up an outfit in your head whilst half asleep/getting ready/waking up? Well I do anyway... But this morning, that's exactly what I did. Scanned the room quickly and put the various bits strewn across the room, into something vaguely wearable. Ready in half an hour like magic!

Top - Whistles

Skirt - H&M (via Ashiya)

Tights - H&M

Shoes - Office