Dress & belt: Dotty P’s; cardi & leggings: Matalan; shoes: New Look
More and more of my dresses are coming out to play again!
I have been finding wearing dresses something of a challenge when out and about with the boys. There’s a lot of bending lifting and carrying, and seldom a free hand to pull a skirt down, or defend against gusts of wayward wind. I wish I’d cottoned on to leggings at the start of the summer rather than towards the end – the whole season could have been much girlier!!
Dress: Hell Bunny via Aspire; petticoat: House of Olivier; shoes: M&S; cardi: Dotty P’s; sunglasses: Boots; white hold-ups (their first outing since my own wedding!): Charnos; wrist gloves and clutch: both vintage, from charity shops
Travelling outfit: mac: Primark; ballet flats: New Look; brolly: Matalan; overnight bag/satchel: a gift from my Mum’s new craft/gift shop! (More on that later…)
My first proper girly outing since the boys were born! Chrissie was my best mate at school, and as Sarah and I were the only “old skool” representatives there, we elected to leave the families behind and make a day of it! We met at Waterloo at noon, caught a train straight to Kingston and enjoyed a leisurely lunch on the waterfront whilst we caught up before making our way to the venue.
It was a gorgeous wedding – the bride looked simply stunning in white lace, and the venue, aptly for Chrissie a rowing club, was decked out in home-made vintage-style bunting and stunning country floral arrangements. We enjoyed an afternoon tea made by the wedding party, served on tiered cake stands made from mismatched vintage china and vinyls. Our places were marked with luggage tags tied to tea cups, each of which was our personal wedding favour. After tea we danced, then enjoyed an informal supper of Pieminster pies with mash and mushy peas. Sarah and I caught the last train back to London in time to catch the last tube home to hers.
As for what I wore, well, that’s a fun story in itself! Dapper and I went into Solihull the week before the wedding, to find him a pair of sandals in the sales. We were walking past Aspire and he suggested we have a quick look in the sale in case there was something I could wear. The only dress that jumped out and was available in a size 16 was this Hell Bunny dress. I duly tried it on, but… it was too big!! The 14 fit like a glove, and Dapper offered to buy it for me. On sale at £27.50 (half price) it was a definite bargain!
And the gloves? Well, I wanted to look polished as it was a wedding, but not to over the top, as a hat might. The weather was also a bit iffy, so, a sun hat might look out of place. I thought the gloves pulled my outfit together, but not in an obvious or unfitting way. And, y’know, I like wearing them!
Meanwhile, at home it seems the boys were having a whale of a time – Conall enjoyed a teddy bear’s picnic, before Hal rode in and slaughtered the teddy… great fun!
Dapper’s Nan’s 95th birthday fell on a balmy evening before the summer, well, ended abruptly. Just as well as the M-I-L and I spent much of Thursday afternoon preparing food for 40 folk to enjoy outside, and we’d never have fit 40 under the gazebo!
Apologies for the poor picture – it was taken at the very last minute, and I had no time to take another, better shot!
Dress: Lady V London; petticoat: House of Olivier; cardigan & flats: Matalan
My wee lads stayed up late for the occasion and at first dark we enjoyed fireworks – their first. I was half expecting tears at the loud bangs and screeches, but they were in awe, glued to the bright lights and colours. It took a while afterwards to settle them to sleep, though!
Yes, really! An actual “outfit shot” post for you – with a pic and everything!
Dress: George @ ASDA; cardi & belt: Dotty P’s; shoes: M&S
You might recall this post about my post-baby body, and how I had a new-found respect for it? Well, honestly? That didn’t last. The honeymoon period ended in spring, more or less, when I realised I couldn’t fit into any of my lovely summer dresses yet again. Luckily, it was about this time that I got access to the “allotment” and began to garden in earnest, which really helped to re-strengthen my muscles and burn some calories. Add in running around after two little monkeys, and bibbity bobbity boo – I’m back into some of my old favourites!
I still have quite a lot left to lose, but getting into my beloved green George dress for Sunday lunch at The Leopard in Bishops Tachbrook was a real confidence booster. The occasion was Dapper’s Nan’s 95th birthday, and we have a second family affair this evening as well! So, if the outfit shots were your reason for reading in the past, hold tight – they might just start to reappear with a little more regularity…
Because I’m rather short of time just now, up to my eyeballs in freelance and trying to prepare for fairs…
So, I wore this:
To go here:
To see this:
It was brilliant.
Also, the boys had their first taste of real chocolate. Conall wasn’t keen, but Hal…
We learned to play peekaboo:
And did a lot of running about:
And monkeying about:
As well as playing outside:
Mummy wore this:
But best of all, we read a load of these!
All in all, it was pretty great!
Blouse: New Look; skirt: F&F; shoes: Primark; cardigan: South via Ebay; belt: Topshop
This month has been a pretty big one for me. Building up to self-employment has been something of a rollercoaster, exciting and terrifying in equal measure. But whether co-incidentally or relatedly, March has also been a major turning point in my post-natal life. It has seen the first time in a very long time that I have really felt myself again.
Many new mothers feel “lost” in their first year of motherhood, and I have certainly felt this way. I became “Mummy” so completely, and to everyone around me, that I haven’t seen “Caroline” in what feels an eternity. But last weekend, my Mummy and I went to the NEC for the Sewing for Pleasure/Hobbycrafts/Fashion, Embroidery and Stitch show. I had been shopping on the Friday and picked up a new blouse (not my usual style, I know, but I just fell in love with it!) and blow-dried my hair properly for the first time in over a year. I felt good when I arrived, and after a day of browsing crafty goodies I felt truly inspired. I learned to tat lace, and came home buzzing with ideas and positivity.
I also came home with a tatting kit, some felt, some hessian for a rag rug, a rainbow of felting wool, a load of ribbon and lots of frankly gorgeous fabrics for kiddly clothes which I can’t wait to get started with! And Mummy bought me a big ball of the most gorgeous yarn with which to knit my first scarf when she teaches me to knit (again!) this week.
That evening, sitting in the conservatory eating dinner beside my husband, I looked up and saw my reflection in the glass. I was amazed to see myself looking back: not the tired, puffy face I have grown accustomed to avoiding eye contact with over the last year, but a glimmer of someone I recognised from a few years back. I don’t know whether it was the result of the boys hitting that 1 year corrected age marker, getting a bit of my old craft mojo back, giving up the commute and taking control of my own work schedule, or a combination of the lot all in line with the equinox… All I know for sure is that something clicked back into place. And I felt good.
In related news, I have now had my wedding ring on for 2 months solid. This has not been possible since before the boys arrived, when my fingers became swollen sausages with irritable skin. Woohoo!
At the weekend we decided to meet up with our friends Marios & Aysu for an afternoon in the sunshine at Charlecote park. It was a glorious sunny day, with temperatures in the Midlands hitting around 17°. And I had nothing to wear.
I am still 2 dress sizes larger than I was pre-pregnancy, and the summer dresses I last wore two years ago just won’t fasten over my bust any more. So, I decided I would have to admit defeat and buy a couple of size 18 dresses.
My first stop was ASOS – a favourite because they make such a great range of midi dresses. When I’m bigger I find that I really need to hide my knees in order to feel confident. They had some beautiful dresses, but most were outside my price range.
Tiffany Midi Dress in Floral Jacquard, £85: Also available in green, Amber. I might splash out on this come summer, as I have a couple of weddings to attend this year.
ASOS Skater Dress in Check – available with 3/4 sleeves or sleeveless: £55
Just as an aside, what is with this model’s mouth? To quote one of my favourite childhood films, “Close your mouth… We are not a cod fish!”
So many pretties, so little cash! Especially since this month’s salary will be my last for a while! I needed something just a little cheaper.
On to Aspire, where the dresses are not only a little out of my price range just now, but also stock brands which stop, in many cases at a size 16, or even 14! Because we bigger gals don’t deserve to look pretty….
Emily and Fin Isobel dress – pre-order only just now, but Oh So Beautiful!
Yumi Daisy Denim Dress: £55.
Would look lovely with a white petticoat peeping from the hem!
Hell Bunny Claudia Dress: £59
LOVE LOVE LOVE
Enter the lovely Amber, and her birthday dress from Florence & Fred. I’m sorry, A, but once again, I am stealing your style! When I saw this £35 polka dot number I just had to have it. And it’s available in blue chevrons too?! Bonus!
F&F Limited Edition Chevron Print Prom Dress: £35
It is now winging its way to me. A bit of a flutter, yes, but I need at least one dress to see me through spring. I don’t think Dapper could take another morning of tears of the “I have NOTHING to wear!” variety like Sunday’s!
Oh, and for the record, this is what I did wear in the end – an old favourite, definitely a little too snug just now, but affectionately known as my Charlecote dress anyway, as it’s the one I wore on our first date there!
What I wore last Wednesday: dress & cardi: Papaya at Matalan; belt: can’t remember; tights: Charnos; heels: Bertie
Sorry about the blogging hiatus – it has been rather a busy few weeks! The boys are taking a few steps together without holding our hands now – we’re waiting with trepidation for the day when a few steps turns into a run! The sun has made an appearance, and I’m pretty sure spring is within our grasp. It has been an odd kind of year, as I don’t feel we’ve really had a winter here in the midlands – dreadful flooding in places, and storms, but no snow or ice to speak of. The arrival of the snow drops a couple of weeks ago, and the first daffodils this week came as something of a shock. As did the fact that it was suddenly warm enough to wear a dress and bring out the sandals!
I’ve also had a couple of weeks without a trip to London – the first in the aftermath of the most horribly debilitating flu I’ve ever experienced, and the second a result of a team-building day which was not really relevant to me – as I’ll soon be leaving the team! I handed in my notice at the end of February. After years of talking about going freelance I am finally biting the bullet and going for it. I won’t bore you with details just now, but over the coming weeks I will be working on a website with all my credentials and experience, and asking you all to bear me in mind for any work you may need to send out-of-house, whether editorial, marketing, web-content, writing… you get the drift!
I’m also planning on fitting in a lot more sewing and many more fairs, to increase my children’s clothing output. So far this involves a lot of cardigans, a number of sun hats, few pairs of slippers and one skirt… but I also have a notebook chock-full of designs. I’m hoping that going freelance might give me the time to follow-through with a few more of these and really build up my stock, perhaps even chase up a few stockists willing to trial some of my designs on the market. We’ll see!
Dress: Dorothy Perkins; vest: Primark via Ebay; tighst & belt: Topshop sale; cardi: Matalan; shoes: Footglove via charity shop
(Written last Wednesday)
Whilst killing time awaiting my train this morning, I flicked through Elle Collections and the Marie Claire runway edit. And it occurred to me that not a huge amount has changed in recent years. Skirts were either above the knee worn with coloured opaques, or midi-length with bare legs, and all worn with heels. Colours were bright and bold, waists were fit ‘n’ flare, hair was long. In a nutshell, fashion looked to me to be much the same as it was five years ago.
Ten years ago I used to devour fashion magazines every month. I would always, always buy Vogue and Elle, sometimes, Harpers and Marie Claire too, and every new season runway special I could lay hands on. I would read every article and study every page, ads included, looking in minute detail at the cut, the texture, the shape, the drape, taking in the new season’s colours and fabrics… Things seemed to change so much more rapidly, but perhaps it was just that we were living through a period of transition, carving our own image into a new century, trying out all the shapes of the last 100 years and slowly remoulding them into something new. Something that worked for the modern shape and our modern way of life. Something that we could adopt and adapt in a time of recession and thrift, to see us through more than just one season.
As I skipped through the streets of London this morning I spotted a pile of Stylist magazines, the front cover depicting a couple of child models in primary brights, representing women who refuse to grow up. The girl was wearing yellow tights exactly as I was.
Still, my canary-clad legs garnered many a sideways glance as I skipped towards the office. Clearly, yellow tights are not for grown-ups. Such a pity.
Indeed, Euston Road at 8am leaves me as much at odds, in my red coat, as Birmingham International station at 06.30. Accustomed as I am to standing out against the sea of black, grey and navy of my co-commuters, I always expect to see just a little more individuality on the streets of London. I always look forward to spotting the gentleman porter standing in front of the St Pancras Renaissance hotel – one gentleman in particular wears his brown velvet-collared frock coat with a brown bowler hat and leather gloves, a look that cannot fail to turn my head. But for the large part, the standard Londonite looks very uniform, very drab, very run-of-the-mill.
This morning my fancy was tickled by a crowd of students, all moving along the front of Kings Cross en masse. My attention was drawn by the very solidity of them, blocking the entire pavement and moving at a less than hurried pace, roughly a dozen, resembling a pack of uncertain wilder beast. The metaphor extended when I realised that, whilst not dressed in commuter-grey (or black or navy), they had, in fact, adopted a uniform of their own: the fur-hooded parka.
These photos do not capture the full extent of their number – there were easily 8-10, possibly a dozen, all parka-ed up together. It reminded me of my school days, crowds of teenage boys emulating Liam Gallagher, only without the girls toting River Island carrier bags full of PE kit loitering around the periphery.
And it cemented my feelings that fashion hasn’t really changed all that much since the noughties began. Ok, some trends have come and gone – the bubble hem, the mini skater and the double U dress… But the silhouette of fashion has remained pretty much unaltered since the century turned.
Personally, I’m really happy about this. I like the ladylike, 50s inspired, Mad Men influenced fit ‘n’ flare silhouette. I like midi-length skirts and coloured opaque tights. I like high heels and Mary Jane shoes. I LOVE dresses.
And I especially like the fact that I no longer need to buy £15 worth of magazines each month to stay on trend. Apparently, all I need do is pick a pair of yellow tights out of the drawer for that!
What I wore last Wednesday: dress: gifted; long-sleeved-T-shirt: Primark; tights: Charnos; cardi: Matalan; boots: Footglove
According to the Company Magazine email that landed in my inbox today, I’m going to be channelling 90s Gwen Stefani this Spring/Summer. I can’t help but ponder that I might have outgrown Company Magazine – seeing as I channelled 90s Gwen Stefani back in the 90s…
I am, without doubt, too old for this look. I am no longer wearing my Friday night rock-club uniform of mini skirt, knee boots, bindhi and tiara, nor the cargo-pants and fitted tees with Converse and bunches inspired by Mrs Gavin Rossdale in her Just a Girl phase. Likewise, I am over my New Year’s Eve 1997 look of platform shoes, mini-dress and full-length coat with faux fur collar (thanks Spice Girls), and my sixth-form favourite orange tartan mini-skirt with matching jacket has long-since hit the rail of the charity shops from whence it came (thanks, Clueless!). The 90s as a whole are, in my opinion, far beyond my reach now. I must embrace a more mature silhouette.
When I got into the car last Wednesday morning wearing this lace-trimmed ditsy print dress with knee boots and long socks, I commented to Dapper that I had felt too ancient for this look for a good while. But I was feeling a little more like my old self for once, a little less exhausted by motherhood, a little less worn-out by working, and a little – just a little – slimmer. I often feel that this dress references the nineties without actually taking me back there. When you’ve already followed a trend once, a revisit can run the risk of leaving you looking more than a little stuck in the past…
Second Hand Shopper 