The September Issue

With just three more days of August left I feel well and truly ready to swap the slides for boots and start embracing layers again. September is always my favourite month in the fashion calendar, the January New Year for the industry. Out with the old, in with the new, a time for new beginnings and fresh thinking. Not only are there the fashion weeks to look forward to but the shops pack away the sales dregs and the shiny new stock sits waiting to be bought full of hope and promises of an Autumn Winter full of style. It’s the perfect time to sit back and assess how you’re AW wardrobe is looking. A good idea if you’re keen not to squander too much on throw away fashion and be a bit savvy with your purchases. Look for the gaps in your wardrobe, sell/give/throw away anything that doesn’t fit you anymore and strategise! Be a woman with a plan. But save some budget for those mid season ‘I just had to have it’ buys.

Wannabe Gypset

It’s not often I have the patience to browse an online store. I love internet shopping for what it is – quick, easy, hassle free. So when I find myself on the huge department store type websites with hundreds of products to trawl through you can be sure after page three I have given up and closed the window. This is why the Zara ‘new in’ tab is so my best friend. Having said that – I am learning a new online shopping skill. Key words! So with my new weapon at the ready I have been taking on sites I would never normally try, and most recently its been Boohoo.com the fast-fashion, trend driven, global site that I always thought was for teens, or at least carefree twenty somethings who went out every night of the week and never wore the same £12 dress twice.

Sunrise to Sunset… in a little black dress

If you only buy one thing this season then you will need it to work hard for you and I am championing the little black dress. Choose it boxy, easy to wear and with delicate thin straps. This little number will take you from sunrise to sunset without a moments hesitation. Pair with loafers, biker boots or trainers for day, and slip a breton or little t-shirt underneath for true nineties nostalgia. For sunset go without anything underneath… fancy adding some glamour – throw on a pair of heels and you have a simple chic cocktail dress.

Small but Perfectly Formed

Taking my Instagram pictures from my bedroom today I spent a bit of time clearing out my wardrobe of some of my Summer pieces. Probably totally wrong when its looking like we have a heat wave on the horizon next week. But regardless, there are some pieces I’d happily wear on a beach but never in London. My wardrobe is tiny – and I mean teeny tiny. I’ve mentioned before on the blog about our bijou home here in London and just having enough space for the three of us and my shoe collection… but I absolutely love it. However… the wardrobe makes for hard work. Actually – I have to make it work hard for me. Always only having seasonal styles to hand, and as much as I’d love to hang everything for ease, most gets folded away in drawers for space. My shoes I keep in boxes, never quite got round to the polaroid thing but I did buy clear shoe boxes so I can take a peak in. So this Sundays inspiration post is a bit of an interiors feast…  with a shout out especially for anyone else with a small but perfectly formed home… loving in chaos… and of course – living in style.

Playing it Down

On a Friday I would usually write what I’ve been calling my ‘weekly confession’, but as the blog has evolved I have started sharing my purchases on the blog shop that day – hopefully making it much easier for you to shop my favourites at any time rather than that particular week. But this does leave me with a bit of a gaping hole in my blogging schedule…

So this Friday I thought I would take a look back at the week, and see what you’ve liked the most… the Zara leopard skirt.

The Summer Edit: Part 2

For my second instalment of the Summer edit I wanted to let you in on my absolute must-haves for my hair, body and beach bag…

The Sunday Edit: Your Style Dose

This Sunday I wanted to take the inspo back to style… a nice big, healthy dose of style. The shops are brimming with new season collection right now, which can be a total minefield in the middle of August.. how do you know what you’ll want to wear come Winter?! Trust your gut, if you love it, buy it now before it goes. If you don’t love it, don’t buy it just because it’s a dead ringer for that designer version. Wear only what you find beautiful and you will feel beautiful wearing. Make your clothes work harder. That Summer slip will work perfectly over a long-sleeved breton with your trainers and a biker jacket. And the new Winter trousers you buy now – enjoy them straight away with a cami and sandals. Play with the trends and bend the rules. What is fashion without fun?

The Summer Edit: Skin care

Whether you’re stay-cationing or vacationing Summer brings with it a need for certain essentials and having just returned from the beautiful Deauville in Northern-France I thought now would be perfect time to share my absolute holiday favourites with you. Hopefully just in time for anyone about to make the most of the last few weeks in August.

Having enjoyed a sunshine break back in May, our August French break was more shopping and eating than sunbathing but I did get to have a few hours relaxing on the incredible beach there, honestly never seen such a long and wide stretch of sand before. It took ten minutes to walk the width of the beach in order to dip your toes in the sea! And with sunshine comes dried locks and sun kissed (red) skin… so in my first Summer essentials edit I wanted to share my absolute skin saviours, the makeup, the prep, the tan and all the gloss…

La Edit Demanche

This evenings Sunday edit comes to you from a long dining table in a beautiful house in Deauville, France. I have spent the most divine week here, eating, drinking and relaxing with my family. We leave tomorrow afternoon and I am taking the most special memories with me.

The Sunday Edit: FOMO

The past week I have really noticed my FOMO (fear of missing out for anyone as clueless as I usually am) has peaked. My friends, some with children, most without, out and about in town, in Ibiza, dancing on tables or prancing around at festivals without a care in the world. When you’re at home on Saturday night yet again its so easy to feel you’re missing out. Don’t get me wrong I am happy with my choices, knowing my baby is tucked up sleeping soundly as I tuck into another boxset with my Netflix husband is one of the best feelings in the world. Especially when accompanied with a giant pizza and a plenty of good wine. Sometimes I just need to remind myself of just how lucky I am, and that I chose to be right here right now. And when I choose not to be those tables are just a babysitters call away from being danced on. But it’s not always simple, being able to enjoy the moment. Whether that moment is prancing around at a festival, skinny dipping in Ibiza, or in my pjs sat on the sofa finishing off the last of the Malteasers treat size bag (whoops). So this weeks Sunday inspo post is about the here and now. Living for the moment, whatever that moment is. And making the most of it. You don’t get it back. You can’t relive it. So make it worth living.