A Skirt For All Seasons

How can I style this skirt?

Let me count the ways.

When I first saw this Top Shop skirt for sale on Vinted I didn't just see a fabulous fabric with a sensational stylish asymetric hem.

No, the first thing that struck me was its versatility.

I like to wear my clothes Martini style - anytime, anywhere, any place.

So when Sarah and I were discssing ideas for our monthly joint blog I suggested styling an item for all seasons.

As I write I haven't seen Sarah's blog but I am sure it will be well worth reading as she is a far better stylist than me.

And you can find her blog here.

But what I lack in professionalism I like to think I make it up with entusiasm, exploration and very occasionally  Eureka moments.

Having said that - there have been a few catastrophic cock-ups along the way - check this one out if you need a good laugh!

So back to our joint blog and this skirt.

Although it it was technically second hand, it came with the £39 label still attached and I paid £6.80 for it and I blogged about it here.

However, I love it so much I wanted to feature it again.

So for this blog I have styled it my way for four seasons in the UK.

I tend to carve out the year into three monthly blocks.

For me spring is March, April and May (Temp daily  average 7-13C)

Summer: June, July and August. (13-17C)

Autumn: September, October and November (9-16C)

Winter: December, January and February. (5-6C)

Apart from the odd few weeks of unseasonably low or unseasonably high temperatures, in the North West of England, it never really gets that hot or that cold which makes styling easier than in other parts of the world.

So here is my take on a skirt for all seasons and where I would wear it.

Summer

When I first tried the skirt on I was struck by the nice broad waistband which I knew would stay up if I wore it as a dress although it did need some definition at the waist with the belt.

As Id used a tan belt I went for tan shoes which act as a neutral with the green, black, white and pink in the fabric.

The asymetric hem makes it a fun way to wear the dress with a hint of leg but the knees mostly covered up which is just the way I like it. 

I haven't been abroad yet since the pandemic but if I did I would wear the skirt with a white tshirt, trainers and deni jacket to the airport and then transform it into a dress while I was away.

Equally, I could wear flip flops and a toning belt for a more casual look.

Autumn or Fall

I spotted this Zara gilet in our local Oxfam and I love the shades which tone nicely with my hair and skin.

As I am usually quite casual during the day I would keep the skirt casual with a cream hoodie and low heeled suede ankle boots.

Again, the tan shades acts as neutrals and still allow the pattern of the skirt to take centre stage. I have worn this outfit - today in fact for running errands, walking the dog and doing my admin.

Winter

Its woolies season but not black. As someone with olive/sallow skin black just drains my colour and makes me look ill.

Pink on the other hand is my colour, it always makes me feel and look happy and healthy.

The cropped H & M cardigan picks out the shades of pink in the skirt and I added an extra lacy thermal vest for extra warmth.

The second hand boots are by Sorel and came from Ebloggers.

Spring

As the temperature starts to get a little warmer but still with a chill in the air I start to think about the denim jacket days ahead so opted for this ancient Top Shop shirt that is almost like wearing a jacket.

I've paired it with a black belt and Stan Smith trainers that have a pink, green and blue floral print just in time to welcome the springtime flowers.

I have no idea why I thought it was a good idea to hold the apple other than that it was a Pink Lady!

So there you have it - my take on a skirt for all seasons.

Around 50% of these items are second-hand and  most are older items from my wardrobe.

The only new item is the H & M cardigan which you can find here.here

Which one is your favourite look?

 

A Stitch in Time

 Looking at this photograph, what do you see?

A cream crochet dress over a black slip?

A classic Karen Millen dress?

A party dress?

This dress is all of those and much more.

When I look at this dress I am transported back to my 30s in 2005 in Liverpool City Centre. That feeling of finally losing my baby weight after four children and a career back on track. Working in Liverpool City Centre as a PR Manager I had lunch hours and on one of those on a late sunny afternoon I spotted this dress on the sale rail at Karen Millen in Bold Street.

It was less than half price but still expensive for me.

But I bought it for no other reason than I loved it.

Our relarionship was sealed under the fluorescent lighting and flattering dressing room mirrors.

When I look at this dress I remember holding my baby neice, Georgia in my arms at her christening in the hot summer of 2006.

When I look at this dress I can feel the heat of a hot Sunday evening  in late April 2007 hurtling through the back streets of Rome in a cab rushing to get to a tiny pizzaria in time for my friend's 50th birthday.

When I look at this dress I can feel the pride at standing alongside my son who worked so hard to graduate after a few false starts one July afternoon in 2017.

When I look at this dress I recall the bittersweet feelings of love and loss at my daughter-in-law's Hen Do in 2018. 

Those mixed feelings of knowing that your eldest son has found the love of his life but you are no longer the number one priority in his life - as it should be.

 I wore this dress deliberately as it was my safety blanket and I needed the support of a really good friend.

This dress didn't let me down. 

And now I couldn't be happier that my son has found such a wonderful woman to be his wife and the mother of my beautiful granddaugter.

There are many other times that are not photographed but are woven into the fabric of my memory. 

The day I tumbled downstairs after having one too many at a local bar and was caught by a handsome young man who turned out to be a friend of my sons. 

The barbeuces and dinner parties.

My love affair with this dress has continued throughout the ups and downs of my weight.

 It has hugged me close when I was a size 6 and a size 12 and every size  in between.

Every stitch is infused with my life from my 30s to my 50s and all the rich array of emotions I I have had the privilege of experiencing.

Sutra is the Sanskrit name for a short story (or a spiritual teaching) and comes from the same root as the English word suture or stitch.

And it is why I feel that the threads of this dress are stitched together within the rich tapestry of the small fabric of my life.

Today's post is a joint collaboration with Melbourne based style blogger Sarah

London and she has an amzing story about a fabulous wool coat - please hop over and take a read.

See you soon,

Jane X

Pink Dahlias & Heidi Roses

It's been a busy old time.

Bank Holiday Monday was spent working on the farm which if course meant posing for photots for me and tending to the animals for my husband.

We took Frankie and he loved having a sniff around.

I settled on the Dahlia patch for my photo and coudn't resist plucking one for a buttonhole for the day and its now in a bud vase I got from the charity shop for £1.

When I am not posing for photos of crocheting granny squares I have been reading this latest book from Ed Balls.

I am enjoying the read but I wish there were more nostalgic photos from the 70s and 80s.

And whenever I can I have been enjoying vists with this little one.

Heidi Rose my gorgeous grandaughter is now two months old and getting smilier by the day.

So It's farewell to August and summer and hello to autumn.

See you on the other side.

Jane x

I wore:

Shoes - Stan Smiths

Skirt H & M

Tshirt - Reiss

Jacket - Asos

Second Hand Stories

 

Today is the first day of an exciting new collaboration with Australian blogger, Sarah London, the mindful stylist. I met Sarah through Instagram and I have followed her posts for a while.

A few weeks ago I was delighted when she agreed to be interviewed for my 7 Secrets of my Style series on Instagram and even more delighted when she asked if I would like to share a monthly blog posts - writing a post on the same topic. And here we are.

Our first topic is the sroty behind our love of shopping second-hand.

For me shopping second-hand is very much like my yoga journey. I went into it expecting one thing and ended up with something very different. Bear with me. 

I started practising yoga in 1991 when I was six months pregnant with my eldest son and the gym owner had a quiet word to say I needed to adjust my current weight training regime. He was right but I didn't like the idea of doing no exercise. He suggested yoga.

I couldn't find any yoga classes for my area in those days but instead taught myself a pregnancy routine from a book. I was resistant at first but soon found the physical shapes fed by desire to move by body. At first it was a means to an end when I couldn't get to the gym. Four babies later I was still practising yoga and pleased with myself when I achieved a challenging new poses like Hanumanasana (the splits) or a headstand. It fed my need to push myself physically.

But then something happened. I realised the physical side was no longer that important. What I enjoyed about my yoga practice was the sense of peace and calm that I was able to carry into my everyday life. I had finally got the essence of yoga.

A similar thing happened with second-hand shopping. At first it was a means to an end when I was a student and had little money but a big passion for clothes. I could buy a whole outfit for not much money. Over the years as more money became available to feed  my fashion habit I strayed into fast fashion but somethign didn't feel right. I became more aware of the dire conditions of fast fashion workers, the impact on the environment and the cost to the planet. In 2008/2009 I did a year of buying no new clothes documented in my blog WorkthatWardrobe and I rediscovered the joys of secondhand shopping.

And then something happened. I realised something new to me was just as exciting as boxfresh clothes. What I loved about second-hand shopping was I could  get the same buzz without harming the planet. I still have a lot to learn as the book, Loved Clothes Last is telling me but I feel I am now finally getting the true essence of sustainable shopping.

It must have rubbed off as two of my sons run a successful second-hand designer clothing brand, Luxe Collective.

I still have a long way to go but I hope you join me on my journey to becoming a more sustainable shopper.

Have a great day.

Today I wore:

Shoes - Karen Millen via ebay

Skirt - Top Shop via Vinted

Jacket M&S via Oxfam

Top - Superdry via Oxfam

Bag - Mulberry via Luxe Collective

Unto This Last

 

I last stood at this spot in John Ruskin's house in 1981.

I was 15 and on a camping trip with my school's Writers' Club.

We had visited many literary sites that didn't really connect with a 15-year-old schoolgirl from Manchester.

But John Ruskin's house was a place where I felt inspired.

I stood at that spot and decided I would become a writer.

The following year I won a short story competition run by Salford City Council and went on to study Ruskin at university during my English Literature (Literature of Ideas) degree.

10 years later I was employed as a journalist at The Liverpool Echo where I met a very good friend, Peter Grant who had studied at Ruskin College in Oxford.

Ruskin was born and lived in London and later, Oxford but moved to Brantwood by Coniston Water in 1871.

During his life he had been an artist, painter, writer, poet, political theorist and social reformer.

He took on Brantwood when it was a wreck and rebuilt the home and gardens.

He lived there until his death in 1900.

Unto This Last is a series of political essays which warns of the dangers of industrialization on nature.

Ruskin often enjoyed boating trips on the lake from here.

The gardens are amazing with a variety of areas which have been developed since Ruskin's death using his ideas.

I loved the ferns in The Professor's Garden.

If you ever get the chance to visit it is such an inspiring place and I am sure the spirit of the man lives on in the fabric of the building.

I wore:

Sandals: Birkenstock

Skort: Trespass

Top: Next

Glasses: Prada

Swallows, Amazons & Yogis

 

Everyone enjoys a Lake District adventure don't they?

Fed up of a January lockdown I booked myself on a Yoga & Walking Holiday in the Lake District.

After no alone time for what seemed like aeons I made sure I knew no-one else and could travel solo and decide how much time I wanted to spend with other people.

And last Monday that impulse summer booking finally arrived - at the same time as a heatwave.

Of course my adventure began in a charity shop - the Scope shop in Windermere which I had dicovered during our trip in May. 

This time I found a lovely Monsoon dress which I'm wearing in the grounds of the hotel where our yoga retreat took place.

I had come to Winderemer because I was picking up two fellow solo yogis from the train station.

 A Whatsapp group had been created for all attendees a couple of days before and as I knew the area well and was driving through Windermere to get to the retreat I offered to give lifts.

 It was also a useful way to get to know a couple of peopel first. 

Luckily, both Alison and Janie proved to be great company.

After unpacking and arranging my yoga vests in order we enjoyed our first yoga class in the studio.

It was Monday and the July heatwave hadn't quite reached its peak.

We were staying at Yewfield, a vegetarian country house hotel and after a lovely meak I retired to my room for an early night as the morning yoga started at 6.45am.

As the weather was warming up our group opted for the outdoor yoga classes on the lawn in front of the hotel. 

Imagine lying on the lawn in savasana, staring at the clouds and watching swallows swoop overhead while in the distance you can hear the rustling of wild deer.

It was fabulous and the time just flew.

After breakfast three walking guides came to lead our 20-strong group on a hike in the fells which included several stops at lakes for a cooling swim.

Around 4pm we returned to the hotel to prepare for our two hour evening yoga session and dinner.

The days took on this familiar rhythm.

Yoga, hike/swim, yoga, dinner, bed. Repeat.

It was a magical time and perfect timing with the weather.

The retreat ended on the Friday and we said our farewells before making our way home.

However, on the way home I made a detour to visit a special place near Coniston Water which I will post about next.

If you ever fancy a yoga retreat I would wholeheartedly recommend Michelle and her team at  Adventure Yogi who made this trip such a lovely, grown up adventure.

A Prayer to St Anthony

 

Do you ever regret sending an item to the charity shop?

Its only happened once but how it hurts.

Why did I get rid of this skirt?

It was my favourite.

I even wrote a whole post about it here.

It had pockets, landed perfectly on my knee and I wore it any time of the year.

It was from Marks & Spencer and despite an ebay search it hasn't turned up.

I bought it in 2009 so the chances of one still being around are remote.

I have read on Instagram recently of praying to the charity shop gods in the hope of finding one.

I know when I lose my keys I always say a prayer to St Anthony, the patron saint of lost things and I am hoping that one day a miracle will happen.

Not everyone liked my skirt though as you can read here in the farewell letter from one of the men I worked with when I was a Writer in Residence at HMP Garth.

Still, my dress sense has never been a popularity contest!