Sweatshirts 2018

Thursday 25 January 2018



Just before Christmas, ASOS Premier did a 30% off anything across the site. I ordered three things. 

1. Whistles Rue De La Paix Sweatshirt
2. New Look Belle Sweatshirt
3. Selected Femme Jumper


I kept the jumper.

What was wrong with the sweatshirts? Nothing. Nothing whatsoever except I couldn't really justify another black sweatshirt with a bit of a French thing going on. Besides which I already had this one.


Ganni Sweatshirt (old)
Jeans (old)
Golden Goose Trainers (old)
Lidl Coat (AW17 sold out)

This is my Ganni one circa 2013. It still looks like new, wears well and washes well. There's nothing wrong with it - so every year it comes out and gets worn. But I do fancy a new one which is different to anything else I've got. I've been eyeing up a Rouge one since last year but I'm keeping my options open because whilst looking around, I've come up with a few more which I wouldn't mind giving wardrobe space to. 




My favourites are number 1 and 2 by The Great. A brand I'm not familiar with but after a bit of googling, I could really get on board with their sweatshirts (when they go in the sale). The Mango sweatshirts are a bit lighter and fresher for the spring months which is why I've included a bit of colour for a change and not a single grey sweatshirt - I think I have probably six at last count so it's  probably time to step away from the grey. Infact it's absolutely time to step away from the grey!




Friday Five : 19 January 2018

Friday 19 January 2018



Go me! Go me! Go me! Another Friday Five!


Friday Five (1 of 5) Spring has sprung.


I know it hasn't really and it's actually freezing but I'm looking ahead because those warmer days are coming - I can feel it in my very cold bones. And the looking ahead basically amounts to me buying this little summer top from Topshop. It's one of those cute little numbers which you wear with jeans and tan sandals whilst swinging your little wicker basket bag. Indulge me. Anyway, it was in the sale, it was pretty and it's my kind of thing. The pink cardigan, I've actually tried on in M&S and it's soft and cosy and I want it. The lovely dusky shade will work nicely come the lighter days. The sunglasses? Well I've had my eye on these for a while - I really like the pinky beige frames and I do love my existing H&M sunglasses - more so than my more expensive Whistles ones. The tan sandals I bought last year when I found them reduced in store but they have reissued them again this year, grab them whilst you can - they're pretty. And I had to put that bag in. I love it.

Friday Five (2 of 5) Amazon Dash.

It is what it is - a button. For Catlit. Check out the other buttons here.

I don't story very much on IG but if anybody did catch any of my stories, they may have seen the one where I did an unpacking one on a 20kg bag of Catsan cat litter that the hubs had ordered for me. Who says romance is dead? Anyway, when that started to run low, I asked him if he could order me another bag from Amazon (because it's a good price on there and delivered to your door free if on Amazon Prime). He did but he also put in an order for an Amazon Dash button for the Catsan. What's this you ask? It is a wireless button that you keep in an appropriate place (next to the cat lit in my case) which you press when you find you are running low and more supplies are despatched immediately for next day delivery! How cool is that? I will never run out of cat lit again! Hallelujah! And it isn't for just cat lit you know, there are a whole variety of goods that you can get buttons for. It costs £4.99 per button but it get's knocked off again when you place your order for your delivery. I did think the hubs was a bit bonkers when he first suggested it to keep us stocked up on our supplies of Earl Grey tea but when it comes to 20kg bags of cat lit - it really makes sense. This is great for mums of babies - think of the boxes of nappies you don't have to lug in and out of the car! 

Friday Five (3 of 5) Coming up Roses

Nail Colour : Chanel Rose Confidential

The other week, I bought a bouquet and there were a few roses in it. Out of the six roses, there were two which had done the head droop thing. Now I put those two to one side but couldn't quite bring myself to bin them and thought, I need a pin to prick round the base of the head or something like that to release some air or to let some air in (can't remember the deets) but do you know what, I couldn't be bothered to go upstairs to get a pin. How lazy am I? So I cut a bit of the bottom of the stems, plunged them in to a couple of inches of boiling water (out of the kettle - I'd just made a cuppa) and kept them there for 10-15 seconds. Then I popped them into some cold water and prayed I hadn't killed them. As it was, they perked up and are still going strong a few days later. It's probably a bit like electric shock therapy but for plants. I also use this trick for hydrangeas when they look a little peaky.


Friday Five (4 of 5) Skirting around.

Grey Sweatshirt (Gap - old)
Skirt (Cameo Rose at New Look - similar here)
Converse (here)

I quite like a nice floral midi. I got one last year and I was surprised how much I liked it especially worn with a sweatshirt and trainers (above). I liked it enough to think about getting another for the summer - I'm currently debating on this one below. It's remarkably similar to the one Alexa is wearing don't you think? :)



Friday Five (5 of 5) Onion Goggles

George's swimming goggles coming in useful.

I went for brunch with the hubs last Sunday and we browsed around some shops and in one of them I found a pair of onion goggles. Yes, you read that right - onion goggles. The purpose of these is to stop your eyes watering when you peel onions. They are essentially goggles with a bit of foam underneath to prevent the onion odour from irritating the eyes. This reminded me of the time I was asked if I would peel something like five bags of onions for the annual cricket gala. Oh the glamour. And the tears. I did it though and do you know how I got through the pain barrier? I wore swimming goggles.  Same principle - stop onion odours from getting to the eyes. Swimming goggles work. Or you could just buy the Onion Goggles.


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Last Note :

  • The coriander is still hanging on in there on the window sill (four weeks and counting).


Back to Boho

Tuesday 16 January 2018



Happy flowers

I know, I know, I'm talking boho summer tops when we're still in January and yesterday was Blue Monday whatever that was all about and how it was meant to be a mega depressing day (who thinks all this stuff up to give us more reason to feel bad in January anyway) but it wasn't a bad day for me. For one, I bought a huge bunch of roses for £4 and that put a smile on my face. I don't actually buy flowers all year round especially towards the end of the year when there are no good flowers apart from lilies and roses and so I buy virtually nothing. When January comes forth, I start again with the tulips and hyacinths and then move on to peonies and then hydrangeas and then I stop. And now I'm waffling when what I wanted to say was the second good thing that happened was I spotted a couple of nice tops in River Island - a shop which is not my normal stomping ground.

Anyway, I found two tops. One I knew about already after spotting it on Chantel's IG stories and the other was just pot luck and hanging up with it. I took both tops in and tried. I could have bought both, I didn't need both, I just bought one.

First top was the Dodo Bar Or inspired one which was the one I went in to store to seek out. 



Again a true size 10 fit and this one was more a straight up and down shape. The detailing is good and neat and excellent for the price. The sleeves are not too billowy which make it a little more wearable for some of us small folk who seem to look like we're being overtaken by balloon sleevage. The elasticated hems on the sleeves give the option of being shrugged up comfortably without looking bonkers and wrong. I've got a way with words - can you tell?

Anyway, top two was this quite classic cream smock style top - very me for the warm months. 


Would you believe it?
Not online!

Not too see through either and has a nice swing to it and the bib detail seems to sit on a good part on me  i.e. it doesn't make me look "preggers" which some smock style tops have a tendency to. I like the little pom pom detailing on the hem and thankfully they didn't do sequin overload which makes it so much more wearable in my eyes. I liked it on first try on. I'm in a size 10 and this is true to size and sits well on the shoulders and the sleeves are not tight or restrictive. Infact they are full length but I've just shrugged them up slightly - I have a thing with overlong sleeves -I don't like them.

I actually thought I was going to go for top one when I took both tops in to try but I bought top two. And now I have to return it because as luck would have it - da da dah - Grazia have presented me with a River Island discount code today which I shall deploy on said blouse again. And whilst I'm there, I might have to check these culottes out which I didn't see in store (was a teeny store admittedly) but they also do it petite!

And to make up for the fact that you can't check out that second top online, I thought I'd pop one up for those who like a bit of Broderie Anglaise prettiness. Gah - if only I could do high necks!


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Last Note :

  • Grazia discount code to get 20% off is GRAZIAJAN18 till Monday 22nd January. Have fun!





Friday Five : 12 January 2018

Friday 12 January 2018



Hi. Long time no blog. But old habits die hard so I'm back to what I do best - having a little witter on my Friday Five. Just easing myself gently back in. Hope you all had a good Christmas by the way - see, it's been that long!


Friday Five (2 of 5) Sales Bag Bagged

Pieces Pcjase Leather Bag (here & here) & Jerome Drefuss Bobi Bag (here)

Some time before Christmas I spotted a bag which I thought was a bit of a ringer for the Jerome Dreyfuss Bobi bag. I kept my eye on it and even thought about asking for it for Christmas but I decided to play the waiting game and sit it out and hope it would hit the sales. It did and it came in at half the original price. I bought it. And it's a tenth of the price of the Jerome Dreyfuss. Winner winner, chicken dinner.

Friday Five (2 of 5) Bad Hair Days

When my hair was behaving better.

Over the last couple of months I've had a bit of a static problem with my hair. It's been pretty bad and I've had some serious Ken Dodd moments exiting changing rooms after a try on session. It's probably down to central heating and cold air and all that gumph I've googled but I've found that  having a little hand cream in your handbag and putting just a smidgeon on your hands so it sinks in and then smoothing down the flyaway bits helps. That's the flyaway bit, however, my hair has also been a little flat of late and I've resorted to washing every day to put the bounce back in. The other day, I thought I'd try the Phillip Kingsley Instant Beach Texturising Spray which I got as a sample in one of the M&S Beauty Boxes. This has actually been the best thing I've tried so far - my hair has retained some volume for more than a day and best of all - little to no static and I tried on five jumpers in M&S so it's been well and truly tested. This is good if you like having the bed hair look (aka too lazy to brush).

Friday Five (3 of 5) Coriander

Three weeks later (sounds like a movie title doesn't it?)

The hubs bought a bunch of coriander from the Chinese supermarket about three weeks ago. He decided to put it in a glass of water on the window sill instead of putting it in the fridge which is what I'm inclined to do. I moved it from the glass to a prettier vessel for aesthetic reasons (and gave the ends a little trim) but pandered to his whim. The coriander has been there three weeks so far and I just take what I want from the bunch when I need it. The hubs also asked me to credit him with this addition to the Friday Five this week. 

Friday Five (4 of 5) Hyacinths Season

There's always one isn't there? That one on the right!



Florist Assistant : Chloe Bowie the Fierce

Yes, it's hyacinth season again in Aldi and I've bought some and I'd forgotten they do the floppy head keel over thing until they did the floppy head keel over thing. The thing behind that is that their heads are too big to be supported by their stems and after a bit of googling last year when it occurred - apart from tying string around them to try and "bunch" them together a bit, an alternative suggestion I came across was to stick a wire up the stem. I remembered this and tried it with a wooden skewer instead like you have for your kebabs (cut to right length) and it seems to do the job. Winner Winner. Roast Beef dinner. 

Friday Five (5 of 5) Better Late Than Never

The Kooples Parka (A/W16)
Selected Femme Jumper (sold out but cream & grey version here)
Zara Jeans
Ugg Kristin Boots (best price here)

Remember how I don't like to wear things straightaway? Well last year at the beginning of the year, I blogged that I received a pair of Ugg Kristin's for Christmas in one of my Friday Five's. I also mentioned that I was waiting to use an Ugg protectant on them. A couple of weeks later I got the spray. One year later, I sprayed them and I can finally declare that they are officially engaged in everyday wear action. If you're interested in them (they're not like the Uggs of old) they are a slimmer silhouette and do come up small so size up one size. They also do a black waterproof leather version   here which I'm coveting as since I've started wearing them - I have come to appreciate them wholeheartedly though not in wet weather.





Susie So So