When I last did one of these bulk outfit round ups it covered the second half of last year through to this January. At the time I knew it wouldn’t be my last bulk round up before my social life returned to normal, which is what would be required in order for me to return to my usual monthly round ups of days past. Did I think I would leave it another 6 months before I did another one of these posts, though? In all honesty I don’t think I even thought far enough ahead to ponder that. My priority has been and remains the safety and health of my loved ones and myself, and though I read enough articles and expert opinions last March to glean that this pandemic was likely going to be a 1-2 year thing, at least, I think I still hit a big wall coming out of winter this year.

It wasn’t a hardship for me to give up a family Christmas, because sacrifices are easy to make for me when the other side of the coin is ‘maybe kill a loved one, this is basically Russian roulette, so who knows.’ I am, at my core, 100% risk adverse, so my mindset has been pretty black and white all the way along in this, that doing the right thing is easy because it is the right thing. I also just happen to be lucky that I enjoy alone time and my body makes all the serotonin I need with seeming ease, something for which I can take no credit but am endlessly grateful. Mentally, those combined factors mean I’ve been well set up to handle this bizarre and testing year.

Still, the winter was dark and long, and incredibly wet. The spring was wet too. With nothing on the horizon to break up the dreary months the way social events celebrating birthdays and holidays usually do, I think February and March dragged for me, leaving me low on motivation and energy. I wasn’t depressed or anything close to it, I’m incredibly fortunate to have had no mental health struggles up to and including during this pandemic, but even things that felt like a glimmer of joy during the early stages of the pandemic–like dressing up for video catch ups with friends–often felt more like a chore when it came time to actually get in the shower and put on some clothes that didn’t have a stretchy waistband. As such, there are several entries to this outfit diary that just don’t exist, because I got as far as applying my makeup and putting on a casual dress but just couldn’t summon the additional energy to take any outfit photos for documentation.

Below, I’ll be detailing the time frame and events for each outfit so you can grasp the full reality behind these small glimpses of glamour and presentability during the past 6 months, when I have otherwise still worn stretchy waistbands and the baggiest t-shirt possible for 99.8% of the time.

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Galentine’s – I personally don’t buy into Valentine’s Day, but many years ago my best friend Menna asked me to spend Valentine’s Day with her after a break up, and our evolved Galentine’s Day tradition has since become one of the things we most look forward to after the excitement of Christmas has passed and left a miserable winter in its wake. We get one of those fancy supermarket meal deals with 3 courses and chocolates for like £20, get all dressed up, and buy each other small gifts as a thank you for our incredible 33 years+ friendship. This year our tradition took place over Facetime and there were some logistical arrangements required for getting the gifts to one another beforehand, but it was lovely to still take the time to celebrate our friendship while we were in full lockdown. Plus, we coincidentally got both each other cards with ‘You’re my best bitch, always and forever’ on the front, so that was a delight.

Menen swing dress by Collectif*
Belle Polka dot bolero by Collectif*
Vintage brooch
Old Lindy Bop heels – Similar

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End of February – We had a family Zoom call to celebrate my nephew’s birthday and I decided to play with a new metallic liquid eye shadow I’d recently bought. I love this shade of dark moody blue, but I felt like I’d gone either too heavy on my top lid or not heavy enough under my lower lashes, so I felt the eye makeup overwhelmed me. I tried to take selfies to convince myself it was working but they didn’t, so despite making the effort to style an outfit I didn’t bother photographing it in full.

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End of February – Video call catch up with my friend Steph, whom I would usually meet up with once a month to go to dinner, pre-panny. I was breaking in a corset for a review and switched into the Crocs I wear for slippers because my feet were obviously not visible on the Facetime.

Leopard Sweetheart swing dress by Vixen by Micheline Pitt
Hunter Green Cropped cardigan by MAK (Affiliate code yemak-amymay for 40% off)
Golden Espresso bangles by Splendette
Jenna overbust corset gifted by Glamorous Corset (Discount code ‘Missamymay15’ for 15% off all orders)
Old cage flats by New Look

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Mother’s Day – My siblings would normally all visit my mum at various times over the Mother’s Day weekend but this year we had a family Zoom call to celebrate all together. I’m the only one that gets dressed up for our Zoom calls but it just doesn’t feel right not to because dressing up for family celebrations has always felt like one of the ways I express how excited I am to see them all.

Blue Vera dress gifted by Cerys Closet
Bronze cropped cardigan by MAK (Affiliate code yemak-amymay for 40% off)
Golden Ink bangles by Splendette
Builders Tea 80 denier tights by Snag Tights
Gold Santorini flats by Charlie Stone Shoes

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March – After shooting this dress for a blog review I just hung around in it for a couple hours at home in my bedroom, because I’d only dressed up a couple times in the past two months. The reality check here is that eventually the call of my sweats grew too strong and I changed out of it. I forgot I even took outfit photos and only put it on Instagram a couple weeks later.

Chantilly 50s dress gifted by Hell Bunny
Royal Blue cropped cardigan by MAK (Affiliate code yemak-amymay for 40% off)
Wooden bangles by Grass Fields + Fakelite by Splendette
Tan Martinique Wedges previously gifted by Hotter Shoes
Claw human hair ponytail from eBay

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April – Literally the exact same circumstance as above. This was the period where I felt low energy and listless because we were still in lockdown, the weather was too gross to have people over to safely see them distanced in our garden, and time felt very slow.

Black gingham Maxine dress gifted by Unique Vintage (A/L)
Teal cropped cardigan by MAK (Affiliate code yemak-amymay for 40% off)
Dragonfly and Nymph Duotone bangles by Splendette
Old flats from New Look

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May – After shooting this dress for the blog I restyled it with these Splendette pieces, as I couldn’t believe how well they matched it. I–repeat after me, you must have this down by now–kicked around in this outfit for a bit in my bedroom before giving up entirely and retiring to my sweats. The second layer of reality check here is that I’m always a be-comfortable-while-at-home person so I always choose PJs or sweats over full outfits while at home, but since August of 2020 I’ve also been socially distancing from my household and wearing a mask when outside of my bedroom, so the idea of dressing up for fun at home for the sake of it loses a bit of its shine when whatever I wear is going to get crumbled from me slouching about on my bed and my makeup ruined by masking.

Mona-Rose dress gifted by Miss Candyfloss
Lover Duotone and Coconut bangles by Splendette
Lover necklace by Splendette
White Palmas wedges by Hotter

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Birthday week! – I couldn’t safely see my family for my birthday for the big family lunch we would usually do to celebrate each birthday, so once again it was time for a family Zoom call instead. I’d been dying to wear this dress for weeks so I was pleased to finally have something special to celebrate by wearing it, but I couldn’t be bothered to wetset my hair just for a video call, so I went with my natural curls.

Demira Dreamy Floral Swing dress gifted by Collectif Clothing
Sage cropped cardigan by MAK (Affiliate code Yemak-amymay for 40% off)
Periwinkle bangles by Splendette
Old ballet pumps from New Look

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Late May – I had a video call with friends so I threw on one of my wigs to save having to do my hair and leaned into the sunshine we were getting after all my outside birthday plans had been rained out.

Ukulele 50s dress gifted by Hell Bunny
Sage cropped cardigan by MAK (Affiliate code Yemak-amymay for 40% off)
Gold Palmas Wedges by Hotter
Assorted old gold bangles
Jade Curvy underbust corset gifted by Glamorous Corset (Discount code ‘Missamymay15’ for 15% off all orders)

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May 25th – VACCINE TIME, BABY! Part of why the March/April time felt so arduous was because it felt like it was taking forever to be invited to get my first dose of the vaccine. When all my eldest and immunocompromised loved ones were getting their vaccines in January and February the speed of administration felt so fast that I optimistically began to daydream that I would get invited by April. As time went by, less and less people I knew were getting invites, yet all my American friends around my age had already had both doses. The wait for my age range to be invited, while totally understandable, began to feel never-ending, chipping away at my morale, so when I qualified for the vaccine in late May and was able to book my first dose for 5 days later I was thrilled. I chose a flutter sleeve dress for easy arm access, but it was windy and threatened rain so I layered up. I don’t particularly like needles but I don’t think I’ve ever been as excited and grateful as I was on this day.

Navy Flutter Sleeve Claudia dress by Alexandra King for Deadly is the Female
Blue velvet facemask by Alexandra King for Deadly is the Female layered over a FFP2 grade mask
Old elasticated belt from Primark
Lana PU Biker jacket by Collectif*
Black 80 Denier tights by Snag Tights
Black Sherry boots by Rocket Dog

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May 26th – The day after my first vaccine dose I got to see my 3 best friends for the first time all together since January 2020. We had originally planned to have a socially distanced picnic in my garden to celebrate my birthday but it had rained, so instead we re-arranged to meet up at Ju’s as she had access to lots of outdoor space with a roof in case the weather was still bad. We ordered fish ‘n’ chips to be delivered, caught up, and compared our aching arms (mine had already worn off by then, Ju’s was very sore, Menna had had her jabs earlier in the year and Lau was due her first one that Saturday.) I knew we’d walk around to see the animals but also be sitting outdoors all evening as the warm weather turned cool, so I opted to layer my new favourite maxi, which I’d become a bit obsessed with, with a cardigan and skintone tights for warmth.

Rose Print Claudia Maxi by Alexandra King for Deadly is the Female
Black Mabel cardigan by Voodoo Vixen
Old elasticated belt from Primark
Builders Tea 80 denier tights by Snag Tights

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May Bank Holiday – On the late May Monday bank holiday my mum and I went to visit my brother and his family in their garden. It was a hot bank holiday day, rare as that is, and I knew we’d be sitting outside the whole time under a gazebo roof, so I once again opted for a maxi dress. Minimal makeup meant it wouldn’t get ruined by the mask I wore in the car on the way over, sitting in the back with the windows rolled down, as that was our solution for keeping my mum safe in the driver’s seat.

Old maxi dress by Grass Fields
Half Moon Basket Bag by Ellen & James

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Early June – Menna’s birthday is right at the start of June so I couldn’t believe our luck that we girls would get to see each other again just a week and a half after being reunited for my birthday. We once again met at Ju’s so we could sit outside each at our own picnic tables for maximum social distancing, ordered fish ‘n’ chips again after Menna agonised for 20 minutes over which takeaway she wanted to celebrate her birthday, and I miraculously didn’t freeze as the hot evening gave way to a typical cool English night (I had deliberately chosen to wear the coolest dress I own but then accidentally forget to bring a cardigan or coat for when the temperature dropped.)

Flutter sleeve polka dot Claudia dress by Alexandra King for Deadly is the Female
Bamboo bag from eBay
Old ankle tie flats from New Look

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Late June – We’re a summer birthdays family and the weather had recently been good, so we arranged for our entirely family (me, my mum, my siblings, their partners and their children, making 18 of us in total) to meet up for the first family get together for the first time since February 2020, to celebrate 3 birthdays at once. The plan was for everyone to bring picnics to our garden, where we have enough room for all the separate households to socially distance. The day of, my brother and his family had to bow out due to illness (not Covid, thankfully,) and a couple spouses weren’t able to come. What had looked like a dreary and possibly rainy day ended up being so sunny that several of us got a little sunburnt after applying sunscreen too late. In the end we didn’t all get to be together, but it was lovely to finally have that many of us in one place for the first time in more than a year, when we would typically have a big family meal every 2 months or so.

Candice Danube dress gifted by Collectif
Teal cropped cardigan by MAK (Affiliate code yemak-amymay for 40% off)
Dragonfly and Nymph Duotone bangles by Splendette
Teal Turn Back Prime flats from Modcloth

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Mid July – Another video call catch up with my friend Steph, just in time for her birthday. It was warm and I wanted to be comfortable for what amounts to sitting at a desk for 2 hours staring at my phone, so I opted for this super stretchy number.

Rose Cream Aurora Dress gifted by Wax Poetic Clothing
Sage bangles by Splendette
Bone Santorini flats by Charlie Stone Shoes

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Late July – In the thick of another heatwave I saw my besties outside at Ju’s again. I’d recently been pining for a white strappy swing dress with a full skirt but my budget was tight. There was nothing available that fit my requirements in the vintage realm so I ordered this stretchy piece from H&M (I didn’t even know they had expanded their plus sizes beyond the size-16-that-was-really-a-size-14 limit I had experienced the last time I had shopped with them probably 8+ years ago.) It’s lightweight and very stretchy, so it made for a great piece to wear when wearing anything at all feels like a hot affront, and taking a shawl in case the weather dipped felt like a good back up plan. Considering I usually don’t feel comfortable dressed ‘normally,’ I was really pleased with this outfit, and felt both stylish and comfy in the heat, but my god did people fucking hate this outfit when I put it on Instagram. Usually when I (and most Instagrammers, to be fair) post a look on IG that is way outside of the norm it gets much more engagement and excitement than my usual content, but I guess wearing less makeup and a comfortable dress during a heatwave is where that line gets drawn on vintage social media (in a message I’d put the crying laughing emoji here, just so you know.) Well, I still like this outfit and I can totally see this as one way I might lean if I ever get sick of dressing vintage inspired, but for now it makes for a good option when it’s hot as balls.

White smocked bodice dress by H&M
Coffee chiffon shawl from eBay
Old belt from Primark
Tan Tropic II sandals by Hotter
Bamboo collapsible bag from eBay
Wooden bangles by Grass Fields + Fakelite by Splendette

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[Disclaimer: Items marked as gifted are items that were sent to me for free in exchange for honest reviews. Items marked with an asterix * are all items I bought myself but are made by companies I have worked with previously by accepting gifted items. The use of my MAK affiliate code will generate me a small commission from your order. Items marked with (A/L) are Affiliate Links.]