The day I was shocked in Primark

I promise I don't only shop in Primark. Far from it. I have returned again today after my visit on Sunday only to return the shoddy dress I purchased. I had a leadership course day and finished at 3 so took advantage of the spare time and dropped into town. Well. I managed to pick up a black and white vest in my size (miracles do exist) and in the process, spotted a dark purple dress that I thought would be good for work. Much of a muchness, simple dress, easy to change the look with cardigans, scarves, different footwear etc. I tried it on and just glimpsed the label as I was taking it off, and was shocked to see it cost £17.

£17. A small sum of money indeed, but for Primark? For a very simple, not-much-to-it dress? No siree. I will happily pay large sums of money for good quality, higher end items but £17 for a Primark dress? I must be getting tight in my advancing years, or else the effect of the husband is finally rubbing off after 9 years of togetherness. (Thank you S, I really do appreciate your financial management lessons...)

I might have also purchased a new scarf from Marks and Spencer as well as an advent calendar for me and the husband and some praline chocolate stars. I did manage to avoid the Christmas decorations that looked so inviting though <polishes halo>. Restraint is my middle name...

Finishing with outfits for the last couple of days, both work days, Monday normal work day, today more casual due to the course:

White long line vest top : Primark
Cream angora mix boxy knit: H & M
Plain jersey scarf: Cos
Dark leopard print skirt: F and F @ Tesco
Black tights: Marks and Spencers
Flat riding boots: Primark

Beige long line vest top: Primark
Cream thin long sleeve top: Cos
Silver open back thin knit: Zara
Tassel Piaf Scarf: By Malene Birger
Dark denim jeans: River Island
Biker boots: Dune

Black leather jacket: Zara
Grey wrist warmers: H & M
Bag: Mulberry postman's lock hobo

As seen above, my Dune boots arrived! And they fit, miracle of miracles! I swear I saw the husband visibly exhale when I excitedly relayed to him that they fit and I like them... I think he was having visions/nightmares of a trip to Westfield this coming weekend so that I could continue my search. Although I'm pretty sure I still need to do some Christmas shopping, and haven't we got some birthdays (including mine) coming up...

Only kidding S ; )

Outfit of the Night and Day

Hello mini babybels, I hope everyone is well and has had a delightful weekend. I have but I just cannot believe that half term is over already! I'm not sure why I'm shocked actually, life flies by so quickly these days! Still, I am looking forward to seeing my classes and getting ready for exam season. I have a feeling life will continue to fly by pretty quick as we steam roller closer and closer to the exams!!

Today's post is an OOTN and OOTD for your perusal ; )

Friday night hubby and I attended the 30th birthday party of a friend. I wore a new H & M dress with  a dark brown pair of courts from Mango. I bought the shoes a  couple of years ago but they have barely been worn, so it was nice to pull them out and find they matched so nicely! I kept accessories simple with some gold dangly leaf earrings from Aldo and my Mulberry East West bag.

Today hubby and I drove to a nice outdoor shopping centre around 40 minutes from our house, for a little shop and some lunch. I wore a new Zara cardigan style jumper with my River Island Jeans. I also wore my newly purchased Marks and Spencers boat style shoes and my new Mulberry bag. When I bought these shoes, hubby told me his nan has the same pair which I thought was hilarious! I love them though as they are a bit geek-chic, and if the boat shoe is good enough for Blake Lively, its good enough for me! I am actually thinking of buying them in some other colours too, as they are so comfy (gotta love footglove!) as much as they are becoming.. : )

Well that's about all for now, I need to pack my work bag, check tomorrows lessons and try to get a bit of relaxation in before a night of tossing and turning! Mwah XOXO

And then the snow came

Hello snow angels, how is everyone today?? Well the snow finally fell here, I was sooo excited last night and couldn't stop looking out the window! Today hubby and I wrapped up warm and braved the cold! We walked to the lake near our house and fed the ducks, I was very concerned that they might not be able to get much food in this weather! Bless them xx 

Wrapped up for the snow!

The lake near our house was almost completely frozen over!

Ducks!

I don't know about anyone else but I love walking in the snow... find it very peaceful and restorative. On a different note now, I have a few new H & M purchases to share from my shop yesterday!

H & M dress £24.99. Hubby called this my 'green goddess' dress when he saw it yesterday! I love the classic style which is great for work but also any smart occasion. really. I really like having dresses like this in my wardrobe as they are so versatile. Love the emerald green too!

H & M dress £14.99. Love the ditzy floral print, perfect for Spring/Summer and so easy to wear. I plan to wear this while it's still cold with a cardigan and tights.

H & M navy cardigan £9.99. Just a little basic, I plan to pair this with the dress above.

Well that's about everything for today, I plan to spend the rest of my evening with my new stack of magazines, plenty of tea and some good TV! Bliss : ) XOXO

January pick-me-ups

Hello Strawberry swirls, hope everyone has had a relaxing weekend! I only returned to work for 2 days this week but was still pretty tired come Friday night. I had a nice lie in Saturday morning and then met up with friends for a curry and catch up which was lovely. Today hubby and I headed to one of my favourite places in the whole world. Bluewater, for some shopping and lunch. Hubby purchased a couple of new pairs of trousers and some boxers, and I treated myself to a few little bits too : )

I wore my new Mango skirt and Zara jumper with my Mulberry bag, silver tassel necklace which was a Christmas pressie from a friend, and my new chelsea boots from Red Herring at Debenhams.

I cannot express how much I love my new boots, and they are so comfy too! : )

I bought this cute Vero Moda dress for £32. Peter pan collars continue to be big this season, and I love the oversized one on this dress, as well as the cute tiny heart print. 

Floral sheer tunic dress from Vero Moda... £5! Someone had left this in the changing room and it was my size so I tried it on when I was trying the other dress on. I love the simple shape and classic styling, plus at £5 in the sale, I couldn't really turn it down! ; )

This is a terrible photo, this Mango skirt is more of a deep red colour than in the picture. This skirt only cost £10.50 in the sale and is the identical shape and structure to the floral one I am wearing in the first picture. I bought it because I love the floral skirt I bought the other day and have worn it to death since I bought it! I thought red would be a good classic choice, and would work well with black tights and boots and my black leather jacket.

Well that's about everything dolls, I have an incredibly busy week coming up including a parent's evening and  a full day of revision organised for my exam groups on Saturday (!) so I'm set for a relaxing evening now to get me geared up for the week ahead! More soon XOXO

All about a dress

Hello twinkly icicles, hope everyone is well this Tuesday : ) Today was a very long day for me, full teaching day and then parents evening until half 6, home at half 7, pyjamas on, takeaway and Eastenders! Good times ; ) Today's post is about a mini-obsession of mine, an item which I think epitomises glamour and femininity, but can be easy and carefree too... I am talking about the not-so-humble wardrobe staple, the dress!

As a historian and fashion fanatic, the history of fashion and clothing style has been of interest to me for many years. One of my favourite past-times is visiting art galleries and gazing at the beautiful detail and sheer opulence of the full dresses, as well as the change in necklines, fabric, bodice style and colour as time has passed by. I particularly enjoy studying fashions of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the transition from the full skirted, puff-sleeved dress to the lean and lithe silhouette of the early 20th century. Add into the mix the beautiful beaded, above the-knee gowns of the Flapper girls, the Conservative and thrifty looks of the 50s, swinging into the 60s with the birth of the mini-skirt, fashion has advanced and evolved in clear and definitive ways.

1900s evening dress, velvet, chiffon, satin, lace and chenille embroidered and decorated with applique.

Flapper girls of the 1920s, shorter hem-lines and shorter hair!

Mini-skirts of the 1960s, out in force.

One distinctive feature of women's fashion throughout the ages though is the perpetuation of the dress. It is certainly true that strong-willed women fought for many years to quite literally,  'wear the trousers', however, within this, the right to choose remained stead-fast and constant. So the dress has continued to dominate, both the catwalks and the everyday lives of women the world over. As a 21st century woman I am grateful to my ancestors for this battle, for their gutsiness and determination to allow women to decide how they wish to appear, whilst retaining control over their everyday lives.

Going back to my former most point, I absolutely adore dresses. I love the ease at which a dress can be literally 'thrown on', styled with some chic accessories and heels, and off you go. I wear dresses to work on almost a daily basis, I find it quicker and easier in the morning, and love the simplicity of the look. In the spirit of celebrating this fabulous fashion item, I am going to post some of my favourite dresses from recent occasions for your perusal : )

Cream silk dress with cut out side panels from asos.com.  I wore this dress on honeymoon in Thailand. I loved the look of the dress, particularly against tanned skin, and styled the dress with an oversized gold necklace and bangles. 

The picture quality is terrible as it was dark and hubby took this on my iPhone, but I had to post this because I LOVE this dress! I bought this in Primark and wasn't massively impressed when it was on the hanger... I completely fell in love with it when I tried it on though, and was complimented so many times on holiday in this! The bodice is covered in tiny chintzy style floral patterns, and I love the black straps which match the full black skirt. The tan belt is a gorgeous finishing touch.

Another not-so-brilliant quality picture (blame the iPhone again!)  I loved this dress, it was a bit of a honeymoon splurge from French Connection and was a black, pure silk dress with a low neckline and ruffle detail... alas I did not wash this correctly when I got home and it went an odd grey colour with little bobbles over the front... RIP dress, dearly departed...

Classic Charlotte night-out dress... I still have this grecian style dress from Rare, love the classic one shoulder style and how it looks with my (natural!) tan (had just returned from Turkey!)

I bought this Zara dress this Summer, I love the clean lines and tiered style, I paired it with gold earrings and  emerald green Zara wedges.

And last but by no means least, how could I leave out my princess, uber-glamorous, crystal and swarovksi studded Wedding gown by Maggie Sottero? My ULTIMATE dress, worn on the happiest day of my life
: )

Well dolls, that's just a little selection of some of my favourite dresses, hope you enjoyed my picks XOXO

Supermarket Sweep

Hello dolls, hope you are all having a relaxing Sunday! The weather has been a lot greyer here in the UK today, however this is a fact that please me! I have decided now it's September, summer is officially over. I am not massively sad about this as I love Autumn and Winter, and am looking forward to the cosy nights in, comforting food and of course, Christmas!

Over the past couple of days I have turned my attention to my work wardrobe. A new school year and a new season requires a whole new working wardrobe in my opinion! I quite enjoy shopping for work clothes (although not as much as clothes for my weekend wardrobe), although I refuse to spend a fortune on this type of clothing. I am not sure why, as of course, I spend the majority of time at work. I have always been happy to spend as I see fit on my weekend wardrobe, but never much more than £20 on a dress for work. Luckily for me, the supermarkets now have extremely comprehensive and very good value ranges, so I can pretty much pick up everything I need while completing the weekly shop!

I have recently purchased 3 dresses from Tesco, one full price at £16 and two in the sale at £7 and £8 each. Yesterday my best friend Clare and I went for a browse in Asda Living and both purchased some more dresses for work. This time both full price at £16 and £10 respectively. I tend to gravitate towards dresses for work as I find them easy to just throw on in the morning, with a pair of tights, heels or pumps and a statement necklace or bracelet. On chilly days a cardi or blazer work a treat as well, layered over the top. 

Black ponte formal dress £10 Asda

Mono print dress £16 Asda

F & F jersey wrap dress £16 (mine is a different style, navy blue with a print)

Just a selection of the dresses I have bought, I couldn't get pictures of the other two. Now I have new stationery for work and new clothes, I just need to stock up on tights and buy a new pair of winter heels (M & S most likely, I will only wear leather to work as I am on my feet all day and need to be comfortable!)

Well that's all for today, I am making the most of the last bit of weekend by catching up on some reading in between making my to-do list for the week, and a chilli con carne for dinner! : ) xoxo