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Have a lovely weekend everyone!

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Last Note :

• If you're lucky, you might still find one in store. If you're lucky ....

I had a moment. 

I had a moment where I was feeling all kind of seventies boho which was brought on by the unexpected Indian summer which happened over the weekend. Which promptly inspired a flirtation with some mini bootcut jeans. The Oasis Eva bootcuts to be precise. I had a previous dalliance earlier on in the year too with some old Wranglers. Remember?

On the Sunday I wore this to a small thing birthday party :

Notice the "I'm a little teapot" stance I have to adopt to show you the bootcuts. Hmm. 

On the Sunday, I felt okay wearing the boot cuts sitting in a kiddies soft play centre but on the Monday whilst standing in Zara amongst the young trendies in their skinnies, I felt distinctly old fashioned and a little mumsy. And then it dawned on me that I had done this look 8 years ago albeit with slightly different shoes. And even worse than that ... that I looked like I probably hadn't moved on from 8 years ago. Aargh! Part of me wonders if the addition of a nice seventies inspired bag like the below might have added a little ironic conviction to the whole ensemble ...

Jigsaw Drummond bag

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Last Note :

... or the Joy Textured Side Split Knit as it is known on the website. Not really that exciting but that's a bit like most of my knitwear - plainish but versatile. And it caught the eye of Eve from All Worn Out too so it can't be that be bad and she's pretty funky (compared to me).

Let's start with the composition - you know this sort of thing floats my boat. The jumper is a predominantly cotton mix (71%) and the rest is 29% polyethelene (plastic!!) which is somewhat unusual but I think it's what helps give the jumper it's texture and helps it hold its shape and not crease. So that little 29% is working hard there to make sure the jumper behaves itself. And what made me get it rather than any of the other twenty or so jumpers I've tried on recently? The fit. I put it on, the sleeves were right (helps they are three/quarters anyway), the drape was flattering - skims the bagel belly - and it looked like I said before ... versatile. Oh and let's not forget, it didn't make me look a chunky monkey :o)

This is how I wore it running around yesterday. A somewhat subdued palate but we all have days like that don't we? Oh yes and those are the Zara silver leather espadrilles I was beating myself up about not so long ago for not buying them online in the Zara sale when I should have and then they sold out. Well ... I found a pair in store for £9.99. Beam, beam, beam. 

I suppose I could bling the jumper  up with a statement necklace. This is really the only one I have got .... 

I wish I had slightly longer legs. About an inch or two or would be good, then this would eliminate my main denim woe - jeans which are too long for me. Even the shorter lengths can be too long ... like this pair of H&M jeans. This is the 30" length which is the shortest length they do. I don't mind an inch too long but these are actually 4" too long.

I can do wrinkly but not that wrinkly.

Years ago, I took a pair to be altered and I was really surprised when they asked me if I would like the original hem leaving on which I didn't know was possible. I said "yes please" of course. That's because most jeans (apart from the solid colour ones) have some kind of distressing along the hems which tends to get lost if you take them up the normal way. 

We need to keep this distressed hem. Honest we do.

And from having that one pair of jeans hemmed, I learnt to do my own (I learnt to make a roman blind as well from taking one apart but that's by the by). I do mine by hand as I am too lazy to get the machine out and thread it up but I'm sure it's quite easy to do by machine if you are a sewer (unlike me).

For all the short legged people out there or the long legged ones who do sometimes face the same problem of too-long jeans, here's how to hem your jeans nicely. 

Start by looking at yourself in the mirror with the jeans on and decide on how long you want your jeans to be. I personally think it's important to get this visual. Don't go with the thought that you have a 28" inside leg and just measuring accordingly - it's important to get it right and pinned to where you want them to sit. You also need to do this with the shoes on that you want to wear your jeans predominantly with. Remember also that you will have an extra cm or thereabouts to be added on to this length which is the length of the hem which you will be "re-attaching".

Turn your jeans inside out. Measure the length that you will be shortening your jeans by ....

4" I tell you!!!

And repeat for the other leg.

Make sure they match!

And iron sharp creases in. Remember to take photo after ironing and not during or else you get a steamy photo (not that kind).

Turn your jeans back to the right way. And tug the hem in to position ....




Sew the hem down.

When it's finished, it should look a bit like this but don't blame me if it doesn't.



And this is one leg done and one not done. You can now see why I would want to keep the original hem.

Persian red and ecru. Here we go again. Nooooo!

Actually, I was a bit more successful this time. Because there were no stripes involved. Or weird sizing.

I put the (Persian red and ecru) Isabel Marant Stacey blouse on my wishlist in January - 8/9 long months ago. And every now and then I'd see it pop up on the odd blog looking lovely and I'd go and visit on NAP and think ... "no, not just yet". "No, not just yet" eventually became "right this very minute" on the first day of the NAP summer sale.

Now why did I play the waiting game? Apart from the fact that I have clothes a plenty, this red in my eyes is a little autumnal. I thought it would be quite challenging to wear in the summer even though Net a Porter styled it with white jeans to bring in the summer theme. I tried it with white jeans - I looked dreadful. The model looks great. I repeat I looked dreadful  - so no pics. However, with the black jeans, it all falls in to place for me. 

Can you now see where my autumnal reasoning comes in to play?