Personal Style

In an English Country Garden

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Summer seemed to run really late this year, but it’s looking like Autumn has decided to roll up her sleeves and get to work at last. So I’m saying Au Revoir to the warmer temperatures with a quick post featuring my favourite dress of the Summer.

This dress from Joy has everything. Pockets, pleats, a twirly skirt and that gorgeous floral pattern. I was in love as soon as I saw it. And even better it’s now on sale – snap it up here.

As usual, my little self-made photoshoot was invaded by animals. Shadow came to say hello, and was swiftly followed by Milo. In typical cat fashion, Milo mithered me for ages and then as soon as I picked him up he couldn’t do enough to get away. He likes me really… I think.

Castlefield Market

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Last weekend when the rain was pouring down and my stomach was rumbling, I headed into Manchester in search of something to eat. I’ve wanted to visit Castlefield Market for ages but it’s only held on the first weekend of the month and for one reason or another I’ve never been able to make it before. And I have been missing out!

The indoor market is full of handmade crafts and homemade produce. With plenty of street food stalls providing sustenance along the way. I loved the relaxed vibe – a DJ was playing music in the corner and everyone ate along big communal dining tables while making new friends. 

It was a hard decision, choosing where to buy lunch from, but in the end I went for a jerk chicken sandwich with the most amazing mango salsa from The Blackbird Pantry. Followed by what has to be the best brownie I’ve ever eaten. The stall holders were all enthusiastic and happy to chat about their products. There were lots of ‘tasters’ on offer too – an added bonus!

Outfit: Blazer – Zara | Top – Warehouse | Jeggings – M&S (exact ones here) Shoes – Primark | Clutch – Dorothy Perkins
(Note to self – take a bigger bag next time!)

Jewellery – Handmade by Emma
Cards, etc – Mint to Be
Bread – Hunters Artisan Bread
Cakes – Glamarang

(For a full list of stalls appearing each month see the Castlefield Market Website)

Mirror Mirror

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I fell for this dress the moment I put it on. It’s the kind of dress that makes you love every bit of your body the way you should. The bold yet intricate print is cleverly designed to draw attention to the body’s curves in just the right way.

However, while the mirrored print is bold, the colour palette is understated – which means you can be very flexible when choosing accessories to pair it with. I stuck to neutrals for this post but it works equally well with metallics and pastels.

I have been meaning to photograph it for ages. Sadly I left it a bit too late and this dress is no longer stocked on the ASOS website. However I did manage to find some similar options here, here and here.

Dress: ASOS
Shoes: Next (Similar here)
Bag: H&M (Similar here)

I Love Lucy

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This little lady belongs to a friend of ours and recently came to spend her holidays with us. She’s a golden retriever and she’s super cute.

With the heatwave the UK has had this week, we’ve had to keep the dogs inside or in the shade most days so that they don’t over heat. So when evening rolled around the other day, we headed out into the sunset to let Lucy stretch her legs. This dress is perfect for a summer evening stroll.

Dress: Therapy at House of Fraser (similar here)
Sandals: F&F (exact ones here)
Sunglasses: F&F

Pictures by: Rachel Orritt

Thank you to Lucy’s owner for kindly allowing me to use her in these photos.

Live in Levis

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The last few weeks have been so fun-packed that I’ve not had much chance to shoot an outfit in a while. This post is something I’ve wanted to do for a long time though, so I decided not to put it off any longer. I read on The Elgin Avenue a while back about the #LiveinLevis marketing campaign and realised that I’d never actually owned a pair of Levi’s. 

Jeans shopping for me is always a trying experience. This is largely because I’m pear-shaped and my legs measure 35″ – which is an exceptionally awkward length to find. But after a LOT of experimenting in the Levi’s store (and no small amount of patience from the store assistant) I managed to come away with this pair: a demi-curve with a 34″ leg. 

They aren’t *quite* long enough if the truth be told, but that works for me as it means they avoid the mud (and in summer I’ll just roll up the cuff and wear capri-style). Unfortunately Levi’s don’t sell anything longer than 34″ which is a real shame, because these are hands-down the comfiest pair of jeans I’ve ever owned. Maybe one day they’ll cater fully to us leggy folk… a girl can dream hey?

(Side note: I also bought a pair of men’s 501s – I wanted something more robust as I spend a lot of my spare time outdoors/working with animals and I needed something that would last me a few years. They’re not quite as flattering as the jeans pictured but the fit was good enough. I’d also recommend trying the 501CT if you have a similar body shape to mine.)

Jeans: Levi’s (exact ones here)

Vest Top (worn underneath): Primark

Sheer Top: Zara 

Shoes: Converse

Sunglasses: F&F

Photos by: Rachel Orritt

All Black, Everything

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Way back when I was a student, I spent most of my spare time binge watching ‘The Hills’ and desperately wishing I could move to LA and get a job working with LC and the gang. Then they brought Kelly Cutrone into it and I changed my mind – I wanted to be a tour de force like her.

I’ve always thought her ‘all-black’ dress code at fashion week was a stroke of genius. It’s smart, yet unobtrusive and it’s quick and easy to achieve.

I love this shirt dress from New Look Tall at ASOS. In fact ASOS is doing a stellar job lately of catering for us leggy lovelies.

However, if I’m going to be honest, this is one ‘tall’ item that falls a little ‘short’. In the tall blogging community I’m a bit on the short side at only 5’10” – and this dress only just fits me. But it does fit. Just.

Yay!

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Dress: New Look Tall via ASOS (exact one here)
Tights: F&F
Boots: XTI via ASOS (exact ones here)
Four Leaf Clover Necklace: Orelia
Earrings: borrowed from my mum (sorry mum!)

Soft Focus

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Self-shooting is hard. Sometimes, for whatever reason, it just doesn’t come together like you hoped it would. This is one of those times… I struggled with the exposure and focus on all these images, but I’m taking comfort in the fact that in the 1950s all the images of actresses were in shot in soft focus, on purpose. It was considered flattering. Today people expect more and more of the images they consume. Well… here’s hoping you find this nostalgic and not annoying…

I’ve been investigating and investing in more and more tall clothing recently. This super snuggly cardigan is from New Look’s Tall range (via ASOS). Unfortunately it came out a little oddly coloured in each image – the close up (5th image down) gives a more accurate idea of the colour and material.

But the tall item I love most at the moment has to be my long length skinny jeans from M&S (the unsung hero of many an outfit of mine). In addition to being tall, I’m also pear shaped – so finding a pair of jeans that fits both my waist and my hips is a tricky business… somewhat like self shooting…

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This is my unimpressed face (after seeing the last image)

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And this is my ‘well this clearly isn’t working’ face

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Cardigan: New Look Tall via ASOS
Black Top (worn underneath): F&F
Skinny Jeans/Jeggings: M&S
Boots: Debenhams
Necklace: unknown (gift)
Ring & Earrings: Orelia
Nail Polish: Chanel ‘Pirate’ 08
P.S. If like me you find yourself struggling with your camera, I’ve done a bit of research now and would recommend having a read of Elizabeth’s Tips over on Delightfully Tacky.

Carrying It Forward

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(Jumper Dress: F&F | Leggings: Topshop Tall | Boots: Debenhams | Mittens: Next)

This time last year I wrote about my ‘14 for 2014‘. I’ve never been one for resolutions, but I’d suddenly found myself with a lot of spare time on my hands and it seemed like a good way to organise my spare time into something more productive and enjoyable. So far so good-intentioned…

I started as I meant to go on with Number 1: Blog more – and managed to do this for the first few weeks. Then in March something rather wonderful and unexpected happened… I got a promotion at work. And all of a sudden my spare time started to shrink. So number 1 had to be re-assessed whilst I adjusted to my workload.

A few of the other numbers were also neglected whilst I was enjoying my new role, so this year I’ve decided not to make new resolutions, I’m just going to carry some forward:

1) Blog more
2) Keep a Journal
4) Get back in the saddle and go Horse Riding
5) Dust off the Violin and start playing it again
6) Swim
12) Learn to play Poker (it really can’t be that hard)

2014 was still pretty darn great though. Here are some of the things I did achieve!

Number 3: Read more books. I’m going to post about this soon because it’s something I’ve done with a great deal of enthusiasm.

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Number 7: Bake more. I particularly enjoyed June’s Coconut and Lime Cake:

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Number 8 (Pay it forward. Do more random acts of kindness) was easy to achieve. I started taking my baked goods into work, I fundraised for my favourite causes, and every time I saw a charity box I put any spare change I had into it. I also succeeded with Number 9 & Number 10.

Number 13: See more things at the theatre. I’m so glad I set myself this goal – it’s so lovely to get dressed up and go to the theatre for an evening. Here are some of the shows I’ve enjoyed this year:

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Number 14: Try one new thing, especially if it’s outside your comfort zone (I’m particularly proud of this one) This year I abseiled for the first time – 66 metres! Stepping off the edge was enormously daunting, but ultimately such a rush. As a bonus I also raised a lot of money for my local Mountain Rescue Team.

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Arm Candy

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One of my favourite things about blogging, and following other people’s blogs, is that it opens up a world of style you might never have considered before. I’ve followed Vanessa of Wardrobe Under Construction for a while and I’m always fascinated by her posts because her style is so wonderfully unique and so completely different to my own.

I’ve always felt that my style is fairly ‘classic’, and usually, I feel safer in my style comfort zone. But there’s a growing trend for quirky bags that I can’t ignore… because they are just too damn cute! I spotted them cropping up first on Vanessa’s Instagram but now I find another one to add to my wish list every time I open a magazine. Here’s what it looks like at the moment…

Food Bags

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slogans

A Green Thing

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Dress: ASOS | Belt: Oliver Bonas
Tights: tightsplease.co.uk | Boots: Faith

The fashion world goes crazy for fall, but I’ve always been more of a spring/summer girl. I’m learning to love it this year though – and it doesn’t hurt that the sun has stuck around, so I can actually get out and enjoy the scenery as the colours change.

I’ve been spending lots of time with the two critters below – but unlike me they don’t appreciate hot weather. They’re both mountain dogs and they’re much more at home in the cold.

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