Outfit du Jour - Casual Friday

So it's Friday! Yay! And it's sunny! Double Yay! Friday's for me mean casual attire in the office, which I always think is quite tricky as I don't want to come in looking too dressed down. Plus for those that know me, you'll know that I don't really do casual! 

With this in mind, I've gone for jeans on my lower half. The J Brand Martini Flare in indigo to be specific! I love J Brand-the fit's great, the quality's amazing and the shape of these flares is just perfect. Don't get me wrong I love a good skinny jean but there's something about a flare that I just can't get enough of at the minute (plus I saw VB in a pair at the beginning of the week and so took some inspiration from her)!

On my top half, I decided on a cream pussy bow blouse by Walter Baker for The Outnet. This gives the outfit a slightly dressier look that I think makes it more office-appropriate. I've also layered on a blue leopard print sweater from Gerard Darel to keep me warm when I left home early this morning! Gerard Darel usually gets a bad rep amongst the younger crowd, but I have to say the recent collections have been much more friendly to the 20-30 somethings-I have a feeling it's something to do with the absolutely STUNNING model in their ad campaigns for SS13! Anyway, go and give them a look and you may just be pleasantly surprised!

As for accessories, I kept things simple with a nude court from Aldo, a nude clutch from TK Maxx, and Oscar de la Renta sunnies!

I also think this outfit would look great with a pair of fluoro yellow courts like these beauties from Whistles at £125.

Let me know what you think in the comments box below!

Outfit Du Jour-Spring Summer Christening

Last weekend I had the absolute pleasure of being invited to the Boyfriend's baby cousin's christening. The sun was shining in the Shropshire hills, and we were blessed not to have any of the blustery winds that were visiting the week before. We travelled over the day before and the sky was grey, so I thought ahead (a rarity for me) and packed two outfits; one sun-suitable, one rain-ready.

My sunny delight was this.

Whistles Lara Dress, BCBG Max Azria Waterfall Jacket, Christian Dior Sunglasses and Carvela Shoes.

I topped the outfit off with my favourite Jimmy Choo clutch in acid pink to really make the outfit pop!

This outfit is also great to wear to a summer wedding, graduation ceremony or (lose the jacket) out on a date!

I'd love to know what you think!

"Don't Tell Your Kids They're Beautiful"

If you've been anywhere near Twitter, Facebook, a TV or the radio so far today, you will have probably heard the story of MP, Jo Swinson telling parents not to tell children that they're beautiful. Apparently this leads to 'body confidence issues' in later life, and makes kids think that appearance is the be all and end all in life.

I was told I was beautiful all the time by my parents, not because they wanted to feed my young ego, not because they are shallow, but because they loved me. They were proud of me, they brought me up to have self confidence, a high self esteem and to hold myself in high regard. And what's wrong with that?! Nothing. I admit, I love fashion as much as the next girl, isn't it engrained into our DNA to love fashion? But, I'm not some egotistical, image-obsessed bimbo that thinks with one flutter of my mascara-clad lashes and I'll get whatever I want. I'm sorry to tell you, the notion that "wearing a pretty outfit or having nice hair are the most important thing to succeed in life" must not have rubbed off on me Miss Swinson. In fact, I'm quite sure that the exact opposite happened. I learned to dress appropriately in a variety of situations, formal occasions, job interviews, even something as mundane as walking down the street. But it appears that many weren't. Perhaps if those girls that strut down the street in next to nothing, or the lads that saunter around with their trousers by their ankles, or in mucky old tracksuits, were put in a nice outfit and told that they were beautiful when they were younger, then they'd also have some pride in their appearance now?

As for this rubbish on it somehow being detrimental to self-esteem and encouraging a negative body image, I again must disagree. For anyone who knows me, you'll know that promoting body image diversity is a great passion of mine. A couple of my idols include Caryn Franklin (of All Walks Beyond the Catwalk) and Yasmina Rossi (the 50-something model featured in the M&S ad), and I 100% back their goals and ideals that beauty comes in all shapes and sizes, ages and ethnicities. This diversity is sadly not celebrated in the media mainstream yet, but doesn't it make more sense to tackle this problem than to neglect complementing our little ones?

 

I was also taught as a youngster (as I'm sure most youngsters are) that beauty comes from the inside too. It's a bit 'cheese on toast' I know, but bare with me. So many things come together to make a person beautiful, and we should be teaching and praising the children of today about all of these. I completely agree that we should be praising our children for their 'curiosity in asking questions", and their ability "to complete a jigsaw puzzle", but don't you think it's taking a step backwards to not celebrate their beauty?!

Surely the way to celebrate body confidence is to teach children that they are beautiful no matter how they look, and that their kindness and joie de vivre do nothing but add to that beauty?

What do you think? I'd love to hear your opinions in the comments box below!

Ciao, Mr Missoni

Hello everyone! I know, I've been away a looooooong time...In fact, I didn't blog once in April on here! Sorry all, but I do have an excuse, I'm house-hunting! It's going well so far, but it's very time consuming! I'm also in the process of looking for puppies! Hungarian Vizsla tops the most wanted list...

Now that I'm here, I also want to pay tribute to one half of one of the most incredible fashion duos in history. Ottavio Missoni passed away this morning aged 92 years. After meeting his wife Rosita in London in 1948 (he was there as the outfitter of the Italian Olympic Team no less), they married in 1953 and soon became a great force to be reckoned with in the fashion world. Known for his bold geometric designs, beautiful colours and bevies of bronzed beauties in his ad campaigns (Kate Moss, Rachel Weisz and Lara Stone to name but a few)! This is one man who may well be gone, but will most certainly not be forgotten. Here are a few of my favourite Missoni pieces to finish on...What are yours?