While I dress pretty strictly 50s inspired (albeit not necessarily accurately) there are many other vintage eras or aesthetics I admire. I don’t branch out into them because there’s typically something about them that I feel won’t suit me, or would require me to wear a clothing item that I’m not particularly comfortable in. For example, would I love to rock a three piece suit for a hot Peaky Blinders look? Sure, in theory, but in reality I know I don’t feel at my best in trousers, nor a wiggle skirt. So, whenever I’ve seen a vintage friend rocking a sharp outfit including a killer waistcoat I’ve often coveted it slightly but mostly just been inspired by them and their incredible style. Well, rewind to January of last year when I saw the below photo of my friend Kat on Instagram and suddenly I was like ‘hold up! This is a waistcoat look I could probably get down with!’ Continue reading
Category Archives: Clothing Reviews
Spooky, But Books…But Also Bag? [Vendula London]
I’ve always been a fits-and-starts reader. Every few years I grow tired of the genre that has previously been my obsession and I spend a year or so languishing in a novel wasteland, reading only if one of my very favourite authors releases a new title. I grew tired of crime and detective novels just before the pandemic hit, so when Bridgerton fever took hold of social media over that dreary, locked-down 2020 Christmas I decided to give the books a try. And lo’, what is this, a whole new fun, flirty, breezy genre I can burn through while everything else is still very miserable and restricted? Continue reading
Wearing Merigold As Autumn Arrives [Miss Candyfloss]
Miss Candyfloss always theme their ranges and for 2022’s Autumn/Winter line their inspiration was America’s comedy queen, Lucille Ball. A stunning range, as always, it features items designed with Lucille’s classic style in mind, all designed through Miss Candyfloss’s unique lens. A lookbook for the line has been released to grant us a glimpse of what beauties await us, and one of the items which immediately caught my eye was this incredible Lucinda-Merigold coat. Water-repellent and with a removable hood, it couldn’t be any better suited to life in England, chilly, rainy and blustery land that it is–and in this stunning mustard yellow, it couldn’t be any better suited to life in my wardrobe, where all mustards are welcomed with equal vigour.
Blue Orion [Hell Bunny]
If there’s one thing ya girl likes, it’s velvet for cold weather months. To be honest, I also love it for occasion wear all year round, as England is usually cool enough for that to be easily possible. A nice velvet gown for an evening function? Chef’s kiss! I mean, right now, on the heels of a heatwave and anticipating yet another, yeah, maybe we’re all feeling a little velvet-adverse at this precise moment. I geeet it, I geeet it. But picture the scene: you wake up to a crisp September day, there’s a freshness to the air, you’re excited about the prospect of the leaves falling but there’s still a month or so until they do, you’ve got plans for that evening you’re looking forward to, and this blue velvet Orion dress is hanging on the back of your wardrobe, ready to go. Doesn’t that sound nice? So, with that in mind, let’s look at this plush little baby!
More Beryl [Hell Bunny]
You might think you recognise this green check print from a recent post, and that’s because you do! Hell Bunny are great at releasing multiple items made from the same fabric, so if you spot a new pattern or print in one of their ranges then in all likelihood there will be 2-3 items you can peruse to decide which one best suits your needs. As a person who doesn’t wear trousers when dressing vintage that’s reassuring, because I can often spot a fabric I love on a pair of their pants and know it will also be used for a skirt or a dress as well. In this instance, this Beryl print is used for the Beryl pinafore dress I reviewed a couple weeks back, a swing skirt, and this Beryl Mid dress. It’s a buffet of Beryl!
Pinafore Before Long [Hell Bunny]
Hell Bunny are incredibly organised and much of their latest autumn-winter line is already out. Yes, we’re currently in a heatwave in the UK, but the early releases are still something I love about them because it kind of bums me out when I buy an item I’m excited about but it’s too late in the season to get much wear out of it before it’s time to switch my wardrobe over for the changing weather. That won’t be the case here, as I’ve got this little number all ready for when the weather turns cooler so I can wear it all season long. Did I go all pink and clammy shooting it for you early one morning last week, just so I could blog it for you? Yes, of course I did, because blogging is actually deeply unglamorous and there’s no getting around the fact that it often requires the photographing of summer dresses in February and autumn pieces in August. So let’s look at this cute pinafore and pretend none of us are sweaty right now as we dream of September.
Jackets Galore [Hell Bunny]
When it comes to layers, I’m a bit of a hoarder. I have cardigans in pretty much every colour and more than my fair share of coats, because of course my brain allows for the necessity in the differences between, for example, a lightweight trench and a faux-fur trimmed glamorous, thick coat. Saying that, it occurred to me recently that I only have one casual jacket and it’s a cropped faux leather piece. That works a lot of the time when only a jacket is called for, but for some outfits it doesn’t quite hit the mark I’m aiming for, or sometimes England’s penchant for humidity means it’s still a bit much. Thus, I was delighted to discover the Ravenwood jacket by Hell Bunny. As a cropped piece and more lightweight than leather, it will work perfectly for many a casual outfit. I loved it so much I couldn’t decide between the black and the brown. Well, lucky me, today I get to show you both!
Elsie’s Touch of Gingham [The Pretty Dress Company]
We’ve had so much sun lately it’s giving me major picnic vibes. I’m not actually going to go on a picnic, because I am notorious among my family and friends for being an indoors cat who does not do well in the sun, nor enjoys bugs flocking to her food. My compromise is to wear gingham, because that’s plenty picnic-y enough for me.
Selena in the Sun [Miss Candyfloss]
Many of my favourite dresses are Miss Candyfloss, and pretty much all of my favourite yellow dresses are Miss Candyfloss, because they’re a brand who do not scrimp on yellow, which I love them for. So today’s post is all about frolicking amongst the buttercups and soaking up the sun (while slathered in SPF 50 and a sunhat, of course) in the happiest of yellows, in the Selena-Sun dress.
Scarlette, Again [Dolly & Dotty]
When I love a dress I’ve been known to get it in more than one colour. It’s a practise I heartily recommend, because if an item of clothing makes you feel good you’ll wear it over and over again, and having it in additional colours means you’ll wear them all the time too. So, it probably shouldn’t surprise you to see that today we’re looking at the Scarlette dress…again. I reviewed it in black a couple months back and fell completely in love with it. I’ve since worn it to my sister’s long-delayed bachelorette party because I wanted to feel chic and pretty that night, and that’s how Scarlette makes me feel. When I first saw it on Dolly & Dotty’s website I had been equally as tempted by the navy as the black, making it a tough decision as to which colour to choose for that first review, but when I loved the black as much as I did, owning the navy sort of…became a bit inevitable. Behold, it is now also mine! But to mix things up for you, today I really wanted to emphasise that this dress can be worn casually too, and not just dressed to the nines for special occasions.