Outfit Post: Fluffy Tartan & Leopardprint with an Unintentional Pout!

Hi everyone!! I hope you all had a lovely weekend, I didn't really get up to much, but I had a fabulous lie in on Saturday morning till past 11am- indulging in some Classic FM, two red velvet cupcakes and a steaming hot mug of coffee-courtesy of my boys as my breakfast in bed, well it's got to be done every now and then!!

I've been using some of my thrift budget to get leather boots re-heeled and coats dry cleaned in preparation for Winter.  It's great to buy new or thrifted items for this coming season but it's also important to look after what's already in the wardrobe and this helps to prolong the life of existing pieces and bring to life forgotten items that have languished at the bottom of the closet waiting to be repaired or professionally cleaned. I'm on at eldest son to put aside some of his wages to take a few jackets to the cleaners at the end of the month to save him wearing other jackets over and over again. 

Anyhow, my outfit for Saturdays chores in town was as follows:

My trusty black and white tweed coat that I thrifted a few months ago has proved invaluable and I'm wearing it so much lately. I'm also wearing my newly thrifted faded Levi's jeans and a couple of new items-a fluffy tartan Primark scarf which I totally love-it's so cosy and big and was just £5. I'm also wearing some Topshop leopardprint chelsea boots that I found on ebay last month for less than £20 and are like slippers, just so comfortable and add a fun pop of colour too! My grey sweater is a fairly new thrift find too and was from my local towns British Heart Foundation charity shop for just £3.99 earlier this month.

I had to add this photo, when I saw it it made me laugh as I was really not intending to do a 'pout pose' but as it's not too contrived I thought I'd show it, lol!!

I'm linking this post to the lovely Patti at NotDeadYetStyle for Visible Monday and the lovely Claire-Justine for her Creative Monday blog hop. Do try to check out both of these wonderful blogs, they are so inspiring and regularly share so many other creative and stylish bloggers from all around the world!!

Wishing you all a great week ahead- be warned, it's getting colder so wrap and layer up nice and toasty!!

Thrift Inspiration.....Doing it Fair Isle Style

Hi everyone!! I hope your week has been going well-I've fallen off the budget pedestal somewhat lately and will share my spoils of what I've been thrifting in future posts. 

I thought I would share a thrift find from last month which I've just been waiting to pair with the right shirt underneath and having just snaffled a light wash River Island denim shirt yesterday on a thrifting trip means I'll be able to wear my find below with it and also a white shirt too. As you can see, I've picked out my favourite styles of Fair Isle knits that are currently on the High Street at the moment. This style of knit is not only traditionally stylish, it surpasses current trends and will always look great in Autumn and Winter:

Ralph Lauren Sweater,

Ralph Lauren sweater, £125

J Crew sweater £138

River Island snood, £20

Matalan sweater, £18

As you can see there is a really great selection of Fair Isle items for all tastes and budgets and if sweaters aren't your thing then there are plenty of accessories such as hats, scarves and gloves on the High Street in a range of lovely patterns and colours. 

I was really pleased to find in my local Salvation Army charity shop this fabulous Ralph Lauren hand knitted sweater for a bargainous £3.99- it's as new and is also a longer length so ideal for wearing with jeggings or skinny jeans:

I love how the Ralph Lauren sweater in the first picture has been paired with bright colours and is a really fun and trendy way of wearing this style of pattern. Wearing Fair Isle means you can pick out different colours from your chosen piece to co-ordinate with the rest of your outfit:

I also love the cute little pockets on the front and the assortment of different colours in the knit-it will definitely be a versatile item to wear this season!

I hope you all have a great weekend and I'm also linking this post to the lovely Claire Justine for her Friday blog hop, take care all!!

Thrift Inspiration.....Faded Levi's Jeans for Autumn-and Beyond

Hi everyone! I hope your week is going well for you all-there was frost on the car today and apparently it is the coldest day of the season so far, but it's lovely when it's dry and sunny too! Today I am layered up in a vest under a long sleeved denim shirt with jeans (double denim!) and earlier when I was out I had my scarf and coat on. With yesterday's outfit I was in a short sleeved tee as when I'm working at the library I really get warm so as long as I wear a padded or wool coat then I'm good to go!

So as you can see, Tuesday's outfit comprised a black oversized tee by Primark, my leopardprint scarf that I bought last week and seem to be wearing almost every day, a  pair of newly thrifted jeans from a couple of weeks ago and my black ankle leather biker boots which are from Marks & Spencer also from last year:

I've been keeping my eye out for some faded light wash straight legged jeans for a little while now, so when I came across these Levi's jeans for only £1.50 in a neighbouring towns Sue Ryder charity shop they came straight home. I like the idea of wearing faded jeans in Autumn and Winter, it goes against my 'go to' black and indigo jeans and they are surprisingly a really versatile colour too- I'll be wearing them again with light colour sweaters, chunky knits and different shades of denim shirts:  

With Autumn and Winter settling in now, what colours are you gravitating towards this season? Are you a lover of darker palettes or does colour feature quite heavily in your wardrobe at the moment, I'd love to know!!

Wishing you all a great week and don't forget those layers!!

Splurge at J Crew vs Sensible at Zara vs Steal at Primark!! The Statement Pearl Necklace

Hi everyone! I hope you had a lovely weekend-the weather has been rather hit and miss where I live but yesterday when I took a walk into town, it was brisk and sunny and a welcome spot of exercise after overindulging in ciders and curry on Saturday night!!

I am not really much of a jewellery wearer- I do have a selection of real and costume jewellery of course but I tend to wear just earrings on a regular basis with rings and necklaces being worn occasionally. It seems that the 'statement necklace' is very much evident this season and visiting different blogs and reading the magazines it seems that a lot of designers and the high street have a lot to offer that are being snapped up by many to style up winter sweaters and chunky knits. I've been keeping my eyes open for the right one for me and on Friday I finally managed to track down the one I wanted and bearing in mind I know I won't wear it regularly it was great to get one for less than a fiver!

Being inspired by what is being worn by other bloggers and what is currently on the high street gave me a lot of inspiration for what I was after. Here are the necklaces that finally inspired me for my chosen choice: 

J Crew Pearl Twisted Hammock Necklace £98

This J Crew necklace is a great choice for those who have the funds to indulge in a chunky pearl necklace that is timeless and elegant in style and with the new J Crew now open in London there is sure to be a lot of stylistas eager to grab their statement necklace for under £100 for the coming festive season and beyond!

Zara Pearls and Chain Necklace, £19.99

This is a really trendy, stylish choice for anyone who wants to mix pearls and stones and a real bargain price which will not only look great in the daytime over a grey sweater or chunky knit but just as gorgeous for a night out over a LBD or a black sweater and leather skirt or pants combination!

Primark Silver Gilt and Chunky Pearl Necklace, £4

There is no link to this one as it was bought in store and I'm pretty sure it is new in as I hadn't clocked it when I was in Primark a couple of weeks ago. The picture doesn't really show how lovely it is- a good weighty piece for the money and the chain and pearls do not look cheap either, which has been a main sticking point for me when choosing my ideal piece of costume jewellery. A lot of necklaces on the high street look really pretty, but close up the stones look quite cheap looking even when the necklace isn't.

I am linking this post to the lovely Claire Justine for Creative Mondays, if you get a chance to check out her blog with links to a lot of other stylish and creative bloggers. 

Have you indulged in a statement necklace this season or do you already have one (or more) in your jewellery box already? Maybe you've a special one on your Christmas list, do share!!

Wishing you all a really great week ahead!

Scarf Fever.....My Current Obesessions of the Moment

Hi everyone! I hope you've all had a great week, it really feels like it has flown by-which is a good thing, being on the cusp of the weekend! I've been really good this week with getting myself organised- putting things on ebay, filing away months old paperwork and bills and getting round to my 'to do' list of ringing around companies that I've been putting off doing. Just when I think all the current bills have been sorted and paid for, I get a reminder from the DVLA for the road tax due at the end of the month- so any style items in double figures that I've been eyeing up will either have to come out of ebay sales or just wait.

So with this in mind I indulged this week in one of my two style obsessions-scarves. My other obsession is denim and jeans but my scarf addiction is currently the one that has been taking over recently.

With my love of leopardprint showing no signs of abating I had to get a scarf that featured it in big print and the viscose one below was just £4 from the scarf man in our local shopping centre. I'm now lusting over a tiny print one so that may well make an appearance in the wardrobe over the weekend if I venture back into town-highly likely!

My other purchase earlier this week was this 100% French navy pashmina scarf by Tie Rack from my local Sue Ryder charity shop for just £3.99. I have quite a lot of printed scarves so for a plain one to appear is just perfect- I have a plain black wool pashmina scarf and it's so versatile and stylish and for me a necessity to have so I'm sure the navy one will be worn loads. The bright pink pashmina is one pulled out of my summer scarf collection and put with the Autumn scarves. I won't be doing the pink coat/jacket trend this season (unless I spy a fabulous vintage one of course) so this scarf will add a great pop of colour on days when I fancy something vibrant on:

What are your style obsessions at the moment? Are they items that can comfortably fit into the budget or are you saving for something in particular or special?

Wishing you all a lovely weekend whatever you get up to, I'm going to try and get stuck into at least one of my books in the reading pile- which has since grown due to some library books borrowed midweek (not sure why I can't cope with what I've got, but hey-ho!). I may even venture out for a little thrifting trip too, my budget of £5 to £10 a week can really reap dividends if I'm lucky!!