Grey Skies

Coat - Vintage, charity shop

Shirt- Vintage Liberty's, charity shop

Skirt - Topshop, jumble sale

Cardigan - Uni qlo

Shoes - Clarks

Necklace - Gift

This outfit is a kind of homage to the grey weather we've had a lot of lately. I really try not to wear too many very dark colours during the winter as I think I feel happier in neutrals and lighter colours, especially when I'm getting up every day in the dark. I love this coat but haven't worn it much in the five years I've had it. It's mostly due to the extra large collar, but pinning it under seems to have worked. It's probably a man's jacket from the late 60's and has a label with 'Dandy, Kings Road' on it. I may have to wear it on a visit to it's spiritual home. I love a bit of history to my clothing. Also these Clarks shoes are the best, super comfortable and also go with everything, who new metallic silver could be such a useful shade.

I've had a busy November, celebrating my birthday and also Thanksgiving. I went to an American friend's Thanksgiving dinner and it was amazing! It's kind of a shame we have no national holiday with a proper feast attached to it. I had the best Oreo and Raspberry cheesecake I imagine I will ever eat and I even sort of enjoyed the sweet potato and marshmallow dish. I also had a really good birthday with some lovely thoughtful gifts and a lot of chocolate cake. I like to treat myself to a birthday dress each year but this year I made one and then didn't wear it, sometimes I lose courage wearing homemade things out and about. It's quite an interesting time capsule of my style, seeing what I have worn on my past few birthdays. If anything it's not changed much, I wore the same boots two years in a row. Speaking of boots I finally found the perfect pair of ankle boots after resisting any and all high street versions, I found a great pair in a local charity shop, they will no doubt be on this blog a lot this winter.

Antlers

Necklace - Charity shop

Cardigan - Jumble sale

Silk shirt - Traid shop sale

Skirt - Gap about 4 years ago (gift)

Tights - H&M

Boots - Jumble sale about 7 years ago

This has pretty much been my uniform these past few weeks, shirt + mini skirt + cardigan + tights + boots. I like it as it makes getting dressed so easy. I have quite a weakness for printed cotton shirts and plain silk ones, so I am trying to actually wear them all. I went to a couple of jumble sales in October and stocked up on Jaeger shirts and wool jumpers to see me through this potentially very cold winter. I also found a stash of books including Joan Didion's 'Slouching towards Bethlehem' which has a note from the previous owner from 24th November 1979 about a youth hostel in Germany. I love things like that, makes reading this particular copy even better. Also reading a book that was written about the 60's in the 60's is so interesting, given that we now have some historical context on what became of the counter-cultural movement. I also went to see 'Everything is moving' at the Barbican, which was great and very interesting with quite a diverse selection of photographers represented. This outfit however was worn yesterday for a leisurely pub lunch and the fireworks at Battersea Park. A great way to spend a Saturday. Also this necklace - does anyone know what it might be made of? It's very light and I don't think it's stone. A friend suggested it's made of Antler, but have just no idea.

Blue Sky Romance

 

 Outfits - 

1. Vintage dress jumble sale

2. Necklace charity shop, Top Urban Outfitters

3. Homemade dress, vintage belt jumble sale, Clarks sandals

4. Vintage blouse jumble sale, skirt Traid shop, Office shoes

5. Dress belonged to my mum, bag jumble sale, Office shoes

6. Vintage necklace, vintage top jumble sale, Uni Qlo trousers

7. Vintage top charity shop, homemade skirt

So I took a rather late Summer holiday this year, heading to the undoubtedly beautiful shoes of Lake Garda and also the Romantic city that is Verona. I had a great time and it's been tough returning to the normal working world. We stayed in a hotel with pretty spectacular views and visited some of the local cultural highlights, including the André Heller Botanical gardens, which took us a while to find. The place is magical and bizarre, for example there are stone heads spitting water at each other, many koi carp filled ponds, mosaics, cacti gardens and a couple of Keith Haring sculptures (like the one in the photo.) We also went to another bizarre attraction -  La Vittoriale

I don't really know how to describe the place, it belonged to  Gabriele d'Annunzio

who is buried in the mausoleum there (photo 5) that he had built. The estate also contains an amphitheater, house, and part of a battle ship, plus a lot of references to Fascism. The views in the area are totally stunning and we took a slightly scary drive up a mountain to get a better look. We also visited a lemon house and took a boat across the Lake. We ended our trip in Verona, which is lovely and feels like a film set, all the buildings are so pretty in pinkish marble colours. We did go to the infamous Juliet's balcony, but I found the hundreds of padlocks and graffiti from real life lovers a lot more interesting. I wish we'd had longer, but at least I got a little sun before Autumn hits.

Toast

Time really is going too fast at the moment. I saved these look book photos off the Toast website a couple of weeks ago and they have already been changed for a new set. I really loves these photos, they make me want to go visit a mountain range, or at least spend plenty of time outdoors all the while wearing all these perfect autumn pieces.

Standen revisited

Top - Jumble sale

Skirt - Traid shop

Sandals - Topshop last summer

Bag - Charity shop

Necklace - Charity shop

To Standen once more. It's becoming a sort of yearly ritual to visit in the tail end of Summer/start of Autumn. I last went at the start of October 2011 in a heatwave and before that in September 2010, captured in this post - the bees are still at work! Standen was as gorgeous as ever, wish I could live there sometimes. Also the shaded area full of ferns was great in the heat. Clothing wise, lately I have been really drawn to a palette of blues/greens and neutrals. I think they are the colours I feel best in. Much like this lady who feels best in Kelly Green. The concept of only wearing one colour really intrigues me. I think I would seriously struggle but since different colours do effect my mood it makes a certain sense. In keeping with my colour direction, I bought a Hobbs blue two piece outfit from a charity shop. Normally I would think a two piece means a jacket and skirt/trousers but in this case it was a polka dot shirt and linen skirt, pretty odd but fine by me.

 I think one of the most interesting things about having a blog and getting to look back at old posts is seeing the changes. For me it's noticing that I have become way fussier about what I purchase (well to a degree) and I'm definitely looking for quality more than ever. Not so much from Primark round here these days. Could just be a sign of getting older though. Although September is just around the corner I don't feel done with Summer just yet, time is passing too fast.

A new favourite

Not really an outfit post today, instead a post about a place. Lat Sunday I took a trip to the Barbican, the large creative venue in London. I've only been once before to see South Pacific last year and loved the architecture and huge space. This time I was going to see the Bauhaus: Art as Life before it closed. It's something I have long been interested in, so was keen to catch the exhibition. The exhibition was good although I felt like I still didn't really know all that much by the end of it. What I found far more inspiring in many ways was The Conservatory. I had noticed it from outside before (first photo), but didn't know if it was open to the public. Turns out it is, but only on Sundays, which was lucky for me. It's amazing. There is a whole room just for cacti/succulents, an aviary and two ponds. The rest of the week it's available for private hire, but at least you get one day, and it's free. I love that there is this tropical oasis in the heart of such a busy city. It was so peaceful and I will definitely be going again.