Autumn Clothes Haul VLOG!! (& #Passion4Fashion Linkup)

Happy Friday Ladies!
Instead of an outfit post today i bring you my Youtube debut (eeek!!!) Well re-debut i should say as  i have 3 videos on there from when i had the initial intention to start but then i very quickly ended as I lost my way.
BUT i am back with renewed vigour and determination. This time i'm hoping to be doing 1-2 vlogs a week as well as my normal blog posts.

Today I am sharing my Autumn clothes haul full of pieces i absolutely adore.

I would love you to follow along on this new journey with me and watch while i hopefully improve on/gain some skills (as i am veryyy unskilled at the moment.. so bear please bear with this absolute amateur). This is all very new and very nerve wracking to me, I have been blogging in my little corner here for 6 years and feel so comfortable as you ladies have always shown me such warmth kindness and support, of which i am eternally grateful, so for me to now venture in to the unknown feels a bit scary to be honest.

It would be great if you could subscribe(please and thank you😘) and join me on this new journey.
And if you have any vlog requests i would love love love to hear. I'm currently taking requests, haha! No but seriously, i'm on the look out for new content to film over the next couple of weeks so if there's anything you'd like to see just let me know in the comments!

Link to Youtube

Subscribe here

Items mentioned
Yellow Cardigan Option
Kiomi Leopard Print Top
Pleated Skirt
Warehouse Skirt
Slogan Sweater Option or this
Spot Dress or Option
Mustard Sweater
Burgundy Culottes
M&S Star Dress
Day Dress Option
Duffle Coat
Laura Ashley Dress
Next Red Coat

An InLinkz Link-up

Not keeping up with the Instajones': Stopping the Constant Buying (and learning thats ok!)

Being a 'Style Blogger' is a funny old game, you constantly strive to have some of the latest and greatest trends, to keep up, to represent, to be with all the others as this is after all, style blogging.
But there are times when i grow tired of keeping up with the InstaJones'(this is no-one in-particular by the way, its just a name i've given to the likes of those who manage to bag all the latest trends and pieces  and constantly shop), there are times when i simply can't afford to keep up too if i'm being honest. I make a small part time wage from blogging, I have a big family to feed and we have stuff constantly that we have to do. We make ends meet and sometimes that means no buying for me, or very little at the least.

When I see people on Instagram and blogs constantly wearing new things, going shopping and flatlays with brand new pieces every day, week in week out, it can sometimes leave me feeling as flat as a flat lay. I can't keep up and that's the truth of it.

You never just hear anyone say "Oh heck, I'm bloomin' skint this month ay!"
Maybe it's not the done thing to say on social media, but honestly.. It is the truth with me sometimes. So i'm saying it!

Learning that that's ok is hard i think. We see this constant turn over of clothes, we see everyone ably making purchases each and every week and it seems like the norm.

But that's not my norm. Normal to me is making ends meet, spending £130 a week on food shopping to feed 3 kids the husband and me, and then more again for the 2 dogs. The normal is trying to save for an extension on our house, but failing because the Step daughter wants Ed Sheeran tickets or needs Art supplies for her coursework, or my son's party with friends costing an arm and a leg. Not to mention trying to keep a little aside for Christmas (its only 3 paydays away after all!). In a busy household like ours there is always something to spend money on.

And it can't always be clothes.
I'm not moaning, if i sound like i am i apologise, i have lots to be so grateful for and i truly am, and if people can go out 3 times a week and shop then bloody well good for them.
But simply put, i can't.
And that's ok!
I've overdone it a bit lately myself (autumn new season gets me every time.. its my favourite time of year!), a couple of dresses here, a pair of boots there and really, that money should be going in to our savings. The guilt sets in and as much as i enjoy my purchases and it helps towards content for my blog and IG, i probably could have done without them.

So I'm vowing to shop my wardrobe more. I'm vowing to not get sucked in to the feeling of constantly wanting new items all the time and I truly don't need for anything right now so have no need to shop.
I'm going to do a no clothes/shoes spend in October for the whole month, drop me a comment below if you'd like to join me!
But more than that its learning to be happy and not worry about keeping up with others, its learning to know that i'm ok just as i am.


As for the outfit, well this shirt is older than my son, or there abouts. I found it in my attic storage and thought i'd breathe some new life in to it. The cropped jeans have definitely been worth all of the ten pounds i spent on them too. And the loafers were just £3 when i got them to the till. The lovely soft lightweight Draper is from LOTD and is marvellously budget friendly (they often have large percentages off , at the moment it's 25% off with code AML25) which works well with my ever tight shopping budget. Its also perfectly in this super mild weather we're having at the moment too.

Anyway, i never expected this post to be such a ramble, but you know me, honesty is all i know.
So October no spend...bring it on!

Shop the look (if y'know, you really want to of course 😂)

Four day Hair (Styles for when you want to go longer between washes)

I've been desperately trying to wash my hair less. I dye my hair every 7 ish weeks to rid myself of the ever impending grey and to give myself a much nicer all over colour rather than my mousy brown.
But what i've noticed is the fade in that time can be worsened when i wash it a lot and also i was using the totally wrong kind of shampoo (it was acidic and incidentally stripping my hair, my hairdresser has since told me not to use it!). I want to try and keep hold of my brown glossy locks for as long as possible after my hairdresser puts so much tlc in to my hair, so I am trying to wash it less and care for it a bit more.
I'm aiming to wash it every 4-5 days and keep it tidy throughout. I'm also trying to heat it just once after washing and not keep putting heated tools on my hair. This way the heat styling is kept to a minimum and hopefully limiting damage.


First up. Get to know your hair and what products it responds to, Capital Hair and Beauty is a one stop shop for all hair and beauty with everything you may need. Use with products that work with you not against you. Lord knows i have tried A LOT of products over the years and some just make my hair greasier or frizzier.

These are the products I'm currently using:

Mane 'n Tail Shampoo & Conditioner
Lee Stafford Argan Oil and Spray Wax
Batiste Dry Shampoo

For me, I find, when i curl my hair, especially as its curled away from my face, it gets greasy a lot less quickly meaning longer between washes.  So here we have it days 1 to 4 of my locks.

Day One Hair

Day one sees my hair washed and squeaky clean. I've started to let my hair naturally air dry to save blasting it with the hairdryer. I then scrunch in a little texturising spray all over and let it settle in its own natural way. My hair is a little wavy so i go for the beach, tousled vibe on day one. I know a lot of people prefer a more 'done' look but for me, I love an undone relaxed style so this is perfect for day one.

Day 2 Hair

 Day two sees me apply some heat. I use my Tresemme Large barrel wand and create large loose waves. This is perfect for looking more 'done' and i tend to do this on days i'm going out or taking blog photos. I spray this with a considerable amount of hairspray or setting spray to make sure its well set to last the day. At night time i tie this back loosely at the nape of my neck with a non marking hair tie.

Day 3 Hair

Its definitely starting to get greasy at the roots on day three so first i apply some Dry shampoo all over the roots and leave it for about 5 minutes to absorb some of those oils. I then take to it with a brush and brush out the white powder. I also flip the hair over from the original centre parting and create a side parting, i find this gives a little more volume and shows less greasy roots too. The curl that was created yesterday now leaves a rather lovely relaxed wave. 

Sometimes i'll also pin one side back with some grips to make more of a feature.

Day 4

Day four and last knocking on the hair front. Its time for a top knot/bun. I always like mine to be loose and messy with a few strands hanging down. Some ladies like a tight neat bun which also works perfectly on dirty hair days, but i'm all about he volume. The messy bun keeps it out of my face on the last day before hair wash day.

And that's it!

How long do you go between hair washes? 

Do you style it differently to get as many days as possible out of your wash

Cherry Red Coat: The Colour of The Season (#Passion4Fashion Linkup)

Red. It is of course the colour of the season, but red for me is a lifelong love rather than a season.
I have had a red coat in my armoury for many years and I honestly couldn't be without one.
This year i have upgraded to -this beauty- and ohhh my days, I couldn't be happier or snugglier (ha, that's a word isn't it?), it will fast become my go to coat i'm sure.
This little number will quickly become your BFF as the colour lends instant pep to your outfit and colour to your face. Cherry red should perhaps be called cheery red, because it really is a cheery colour.
This with any number of neutrals, stripes or leopard print will be an absolute winner.
Easy dressing at its finest i think.
And as for the rest of the outfit? Well i adore all of it. Simple weekend style is really me at my happiness. Throw in some stripes on a casual shirt and the most insanely comfy jeans (more on that in a mo) and i am most certainly one happy gal.
So -these jeans- are a new cut and fabric. With new jean technology these jeans stretch up and down but not side to side for the perfect lift and contour. And honestly.. they really do feel extremely good on. I'm well very fussy with jeans, which is why i stick to the same 4 pairs over and over again, but these have quickly become a new favourite. I love how they bend and stretch with me and don't leave me feeling constricted (which I hate with jeans), i'm not very good with stiff fabrics as ultimately i like to feel comfy at all times, and these do the trick perfectly. I also love showing off a bit of ankle and the crop showcases shoes, or sock boots in this case, really well.

Lastly, because blatantly I have a lot to say about this outfit, the hat. Oh how i love a baker boy hat. I have wanted one like this ever since Kiera Knightly presented banoffe pie to Andrew Lincoln in the film Love Actually. It's just such a great casual hat. and keeps the rain off my hair perfectly.. practical and fun, whats not to love about that eh?!

So red coats are in..do you own the coat of the season?

Full Outfit Details:
Coat
Boots be sure to check out the red too, they're divine
Cropped jeans
Shirt
Baker Boy Hat
Navy Saddle Bag

Thanks to Next for working with me on this post and for having uhmazing clothes 😃

An InLinkz Link-up

Decorating & Home Changes

The husband and I have been trying to lay some plans down. Big life plans that will possibly span the next 5-10 years. Its fair to say we've had some rubbish hands dealt to us over the years and aren't where we would like to be property wise, job wise etc. However, we are getting to grips with where we are and what we want to achieve.
I'll be honest and say we find it hard saving in this day in age. With 3 children ( one 14, one 11 and one 7) always means that any expendable cash we may have very quickly goes on their needs and wants.
But we are taking it upon ourselves to save save save any penny or a pound we can in order to better our lives.

The plan is to extend our teeny tiny house to make an open plan kitchen diner and a much needed utility room.
This excites me a lot a lot. We're not quite there yet but we have a goal and will keep working towards it. Ultimately the goal is to own this house out right, rent it out and then buy another home, something bigger and in a location where we would want our forever home to be, and with the help of agents like Featherstone Leigh East Sheen we should hopefully find the dream house,

But in the mean time we are making some updates with decor and necessities.
The teen wanted to update her box room from blue
Window openers were needed as her window is old and uneasy to open so we updated those first with Rocburn. Then we took down her old bunk bed  and got to painting.
She is a budding interior designer in the making and is currently looking up small space designs.

We are now on to the hall stairs and landing.
No longer just a through space this area is the first part of our home people see when you open the door. Ours so quickly becomes inundated with coats (mostly mine.. i have a terrible thing for coats) and shoes, umbrellas and childrens backpacks and dog leads and doggie coats.
Storage is going to be key. Hiding all this stuff but having it on hand is going to be important.
And character. I want to inject some character as this is the first space (all be it small space) you see when you enter the house.
Here are the ideas i've pinned on my Pintrest Home Board

I love the idea of a bold colour, green would fit our general house a bit more than the lovely vivid blue but the idea of a key focal wall at the top of the stairs i think could work well.
Frames, photos and prints also adorning the walls fills it with character, which i love! My husband paints amazing pictures so i would like to hang some of them. Mirrors also bounce the light around in a small area so shall be looking for some gorgeous mirror to centre our wall.

Lighting is going to take a lot of consideration as the top of our hallway (the landing) has no natural light and is very dark. I love the idea of a lamp on a small corner table, which i think even our small space we could accommodate.
The main lights on pendants will need to give off a lot of light to illuminate the area so the shades will have to be clear or fairly open.

 And finally storage.
I am a mad book lover and read books at a rate of knots, so to have this ledge shelf across the stair case would work as excellent storage for me and my books, but i also think it looks rather fantastic.
Shoe storage is also key. Mine i transport upstairs and store in my under-bed storage (its like a magical shoe haven under there i swear;) but the kids and the husbands are all in the hallway. Having a unit to pop their shoes in would be perfection. Hiding away unsightly shoes, giving them a home so the kids know where to put them when they come in would mean no shoes sprawled across the hallway.
My understairs storage leaves much to be desired. It is literally a dumping ground and I'm almost scared to venture in there (i think the spiders may have taken command in there..eeek!). The idea of assigned storage under there just makes sense. Separate shelves and smaller cupboards like below is such a brilliant idea. And the stair boxes is a great way to make sure things go back to their designated spots in rooms. I do this already (well i plonk all the stuff on the stairs and take it up as i go) so to have pretty little boxes is a brilliant idea of making pretty of housework.

Do you have any good hallway decorating tips? I am all ears as i could do with any help you may be able to offer!
Are you taking on any house renovations this season? Autumn seems a good time to get things underway for me, all in time for a snuggly winter indoors.

New Brand: Find

As if i wasn't a massive Amazon prime addict enough, with deliveries probably at least 3 times a week, convenience with prime is just so flippin' good, i fear it may be about to get worse as they have just curated a fashion brand that i must say looks rather fabulous.

Find is the new kid on the block that offers key on trend items that look both rather fun and wearable.

It seems to be pitched around the likes of Mango, Zara and a bit of H&M style so if those are your normally shopping haunts then this may be for you..
Take a look at some of the items that, i have to say, i absolutely love!

-Wrap dress-

I absolutely adore this. The pink contrasting ribbon to the red print of the dress makes this look exquisite. I adore the print too and how this can be worn on its own as a dress, through autumn with tights and boots, summer with sandals, and also layered with jeans. 

-On trend Trench-

The oversized check trench is absolutely bang on trend this season, what a great chuck it on trench. And we all know how much i think of a trench coat. This will work tremendously hard for you and with a pop of red.. super fashion points all round. 

-Slogan Tee-

I'm quite partial to a slogan tee but the slogan has to be right for me and this one most definitely is. I love the swirly cursive writing too as well as the slogan. 

-Panel Straight Leg Jeans-

I've been on the hunt for some panel jeans but being a pear shape and the panel often running on the outer leg i find they can emphasise my hips more than I'd like them to. The inside darker panel on these jeans would be much more flattering on my shape and I adore the contrast and straight leg style.

-Embroidered Sleeve Sweater-

Embroidery is still a trend that is going strong, and the grey marl and yellow flowers is a lovely take on it. There's lots of red and pink floral emboridery so i really like how this one stands out for being a bit different. It also adds a rather marvellous bit of interest to a jeans and sweatshirt type of day.

-Red Printed Blouse-

Possibly my favourite item. How absolutely gorgeous is this. The billowed sleeves, the peplum edge and the gorgeous colour with the blue print... Divine.

It is very low cut but i do think with a little cami peaking out from underneath it could look rather lovely.

-Check Double Breasted Blazer-

Perfect on trend item again. I love the idea of this for office wear but also an evening out, or even for just throwing on, as above, with jeans and a slogan tee. This type of jacket is all over social media at the moment and this one is a really good take on the trend with an excellent price tag.

The prices all seem pretty on the money too, with items starting at £10 and the most expensive piece i've seen so far is the trench at £60.00.
I'll be placing an order soon so shall keep you posted on the quality.
There's a discount code for 20% off at the moment too if you fancy a dabble with something:
FIND20
Happy Shopping!

Have you had a look at the Find Collection yet?