OOTD: Possibly the beginning of summer

  Therefore I fished my trusty black skirt out from my wardrobe (was relieved when it still fit and was actually slightly loose) and then started to consider what I would wear with it.

We are finally starting to move into my favourite time of the year, Summer! As soon as the sun makes an appearance the people of Britain strip off, whack out the BBQ and enjoy a beverage or three in the company of friends and family.
  Last weekend we were lucky enough to experience just a little bit of sun and by that I mean one day, where temperatures were unusually high for May. Traditionally, the BBQ's were dusted off and the beers cracked open, followed by the shirts coming off in hope of getting a tan that looked as if you had just come back from two weeks in the Caribbean in just a few hours. Of course we had to make the most of it, especially because whilst I write this post just a few days afterwards it is pouring down with rain with potential floods on their way. The joys of British weather.
 To mark the start of warmer weather, I decided to abandon the leggings and jeans for one day and start to experiment with some new additions to my wardrobe ready for this season.
  I was so happy a few weeks ago when I went shopping and realised that maxi skirts would be making a reappearance in the trends, especially because I bought three of them myself last summer. I think they are a great addition to any wardrobe, as they can be worn casually throughout the day and also look great dressed up for the evening. They are also perfect for the warmer weather, flatter almost every shape and are a great alternative if you don't fancy flashing any leg.

  In the end I opted for a blue tie-dyed vest from New Look, which I picked up at the start of Spring for around £10. I love the colour of this vest and it was something a bit different to the other things in my wardrobe. On the front it also has the letters NY printed and I have been so excited to wear this. I had also worn it previously with leggings, a black leather jacket and studded pumps for a recent visit to the cinema, but I think it also works well with the maxi skirt. My skirt was also from New Look and I remember picking it up in the sale at the end of August last year for just £8!

  I kept my jewellery quite simple in this look, wearing one simple banded ring on each hand, my link chain silver bracelet and my silver Fossil watch. I decided not to wear a necklace because of the print of the vest and I wanted the focus on the outfit to be on that.

  Although it was a beautiful sunny day I wore a cropped denim jacket when evening started to set in and the temperature started to drop. I think it tied in well with the rest of the outfit and it kept me warm when it got chilly. The denim actually complimented the tie-dye really well and the length of the jacket was perfect as it came down to just after where the top was tucked into my skirt. I actually got this jacket a few years ago now, but I think it was originally from Next for around the £20-£30 mark.

  It was a lot of fun documenting what I wore and how I put together an outfit. I had never written an OOTD post before and now that I have done one I am a bit more confident in creating more. Over the summer I am going to try to experiment more with my style and start to wear things that are outside of my comfort zone. I'm hoping that England will be lucky enough to have at least a few weeks of lovely weather, especially because I don't think I will be going abroad this summer.

My Shoe Collection (An old, forgotten post)

Back in the Summer of 2013, I was managing to write posts every day for the good part of 1 and a half months. However, since then the posts have been rather few and far between and whilst trawling through my 'drafts' I found that I I had started to share my collection of shoes. Even though I wrote this 6 months ago I thought that I would share a bit of the past because it seemed like a bit of a waste to just delete it! So enjoy!

I will be the first to admit that I have an unhealthy obsession with shoes. I own too many pairs, so many that they no longer fit in the wardrobe dedicated to their storage and I am having to put them in other places. My thinking however, is that we will always need shoes. We will always need them as long as we go outside and travel and so I always find myself looking at new ones on various different websites. My collection of shoes vary, some are formal, some are high heeled and some are casual but I love every pair I own. 

This first pair are my newest addition to the collection. They were a present from my sister when she went on holiday to Turkey and although they look as though they are Converse, they are a cheaper knock off brand. However, they still do the job and were much needed as my other 'white' converse type shoes were getting rather grey/brown. 

These shoes haven't been put into any particular order, they are just in the order that I took them out of my wardrobe. The second pair of shoes are my summer sandals. These were a new purchase this year from New Look at only £12. They were a bargain and although I am not usually a massive fan of gold, I loved the studs and the colours of this sandal. I also like that they have a zip off the back so they don't fall off my feet and these were an essential shoe which I've worn a lot throughout the summer.

Next are probably one of the most expensive pairs of shoes that I own. These are my wedges from Next which I brought at the beginning of summer last year and they cost me £45. I fell in love with them when I saw them and knew that they would have to come home with me. I love the colour of them and every detail such as the buckle around side to secure them to your feet and the fact that they are surprisingly comfortable to wear.

Next up are my black biker boots which must be around 3 years old now. I have had a lot of wear from these boots and it will probably be the last winter I will be able to wear them. I brought them from Pilot for around £30 at the time and they have been so good for the weather during the winter! They've survived the snow and the ice, and I can even wear thick fluffy socks with them when it's cold. 

Another new pair of shoes this year are these heeled boots from New Look. They cost £29.99 and found them really interesting as they were different from the plain black boots that they were selling also at the time. I was also loving studded things at the time and just thought these were amazing. I haven't worn them as much as I had expected because I think they will be better for autumn or winter but I really do love them. 

I am a massive fan of comfortable trainer type shoes for everyday wear. These two pairs of shoes are exactly the same apart from the colour, but I had to buy the white/grey pair after having the brown because of how comfortable they were.
  The brown pair I got as a Christmas present, costing £30 from Next. I then bought the grey pair from the Next sale after Christmas and I think they only cost £14 which was a complete bargain for me. 

Another pair of heels that I own are these black patent ones from Dorothy Perkins. They cost around £30 but I actually think I 'borrowed' these off my mum and they've been in my wardrobe ever since. They aren't the highest heels I own but they are classic and quite comfortable to wear on a night out and they don't rub my feet either.

This sandal typed shoe is also from Next. These are fairly old in my collection but I don't wear them half as much as I thought it would. Partly because I forgot about them and partly because I've found them to rub my feet near where the buckle is. I think I picked these up for about £6 because they were in the sale at the time. 

Oh look another pair of high-tops. This pair were a Christmas present last year and were from a shop called Pull & Bear. Again, my like of studs are shown here and this is what attracted me to the shoes. They cost £25.99 and I've had so much wear out of these shoes.

I was so excited when I brought these wedges from New Look about 2 or 3 years ago. I really liked the shape and style or them and because they weren't too high I could easily walk with them. Fast forward to the present and I've hardly worn these shoes, maybe once or twice. They cost £19.99 and I haven't got the most out of these at all. 

Yet another two pairs of converse styled shoes. The first pair in the background are a denim material by Lee Cooper and I think cost around £10. These were so different from the other shoes I already owned and I wore these a lot when I first got them.
  The second pair are another sale item from Next last year and cost £10 I think. I liked the colour of these and the fact that they were different and made from a suede like material. Admittedly I haven't actually worn these yet, but now it is Autumn I think it is the perfect time.

For Christmas two years ago, I received a lovely pair of brown brogues from New Look and I wore them until there were holes in the bottom. Once they were gone I missed them and so from the Next sale last Christmas I got these new brogues. They didn't actually have a brown pair so I opted for this grey and I love the detailing on them. I think they cost £14 but I'm not sure.

Before this post I didn't actually realise how many pairs of shoes I got from a Next Sale. These boots are also surprise, surprise, from a next sale and cost about £40 I think instead of their original price of £90. I love the two colours in these boots and that they are almost knee length as they are perfect for the winter.