Monday, 10 October 2016

5 Autumn Winter Boot Must Have's



One of the things I love about Autumn-winter is bringing the boots out. Boots just make me happier than any other footwear, which is a strange statement I realise. I don't even know why they please me so greatly, but they just kind of do. Perhaps it's because most styles I choose are comfy, complete an outfit nicely and are practical at the same time. Maybe it's because they're easy to throw on and go, who knows. All i know is I am firmly in the boot loving camp and thoroughly look forward to this time of year where I get to wear my beloved boots once again.
Even though I haven't included shoes in my capsule, I know that through winter I gravitate towards 5 types and will wear them on constant repeat. With these 5 boots in my possession, I rarely reach for any other shoes.
So here are my 5 Autumn-Winter Boots must have!





The black ankle boot is of course an absolute essential in my shoe collection. Whether you go for a slight heel, flat, buckle, tassel or zips, it is inevitable that a black ankle boot will become a best friend through the winter months.
Both of these Ankle Boots are from Brantano, who incidentally have an excellent collection this season. My preference is a low heel, almond toe and easy on and off. I have already been living in one certain pair that I already own and will wear them from school run to cinema date. Its a no brainer of a boot, but one I know i couldn't do without.





Left : Brantano Womens Boots
As with the the black ankle boots, tan is my next obvious but essential pair. A great pair of tan boots can make an outfit look expensive without trying (and without even being) and look styled as if tonnes of effort has been made. There is nothing nicer than an all black outfit and tan boots for a simple yet an extremely effective look. I absolutely love adding a bit of interest with my tan boots, the buckles on the left pair make these detailed without being overly fussy, making them great day-evening wear. I also wear mine with skinny jeans or dresses or skirts with black tights, which is in-fact what I'm wearing today. Pair with denim, black, khaki or burgundy and you're on to a winner.



Right: Sperry Boots
Not an obvious or necessarily pretty choice, but vital to my winter existence. Yup comfy, warm and snuggly is what I'm after on my cold morning dog walks, or if we do ever get any snow (C'mon snow.. it's been years, my son doesn't remember what you're like!!Anyone else praying for a big snow this year?). At this time of year I'm not that keen on wellies. I find them cold, un-comfy and usually difficult to get off. These two have been on my mind since summer finished. Waterproof, fleece lined and lace up, making these tick all my vital boxes for a comfy winter cold weather boot





Left: F&F

 Over the past couple of winters there has been a revival of the higher leg boot rather than it being just a one boot trend. I love a high leg boot, whether you prefer over the knee of knee high, these will work terrifically with dresses and tights as well as over skinny jeans paired with big thick knits. The low heel on a knee high boot is my preference (although I'm sometimes partial to a heel also) as it makes them great day-wear boots giving your legs that little bit more coverage in the colder months, and you can hide some super thick sock under them too and nobody is any the wiser. Win win!
These are often my investment piece as they wear well and will last you a long time.


Left: Silver
Right: Dark red
 Lastly, what I love to call 'The Wildcard' in your collection. This can be anything from a leopard print, a patent pair, a bold red pair or even Space boots (aka silver boots). I never splurge too much on these as they are often just a  passing trend of just a bit of fun. But they sure to make for great dressing up for an evening out. These add instant interest, making a simple outfit instantly fun.  I currently don't have a wildcard in my collection, I think I need to rectify that pronto!



Do you have any winter boot essentials?
Are they any of the above, or all 5 like me?

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Friday, 7 October 2016

Dressing Out Of My Comfort Zone ( & Passion4Fashion Linkup)




I spoke a couple of weeks ago about creating a defined style, which then enables a more cohesive capsule. But every capsule I've done so far has had what i term 'The Wildcard'.
When you look in my wardrobe at the moment you see a wash of similar colours (denims, blues, black, cream, tan and a little pink and khaki), but what my eye is always pulled to, is this shirt. 
It doesn't fit with my general (loose) theme, but yet it also works well with all my connecting pieces (jeans, skirts and cardigans). 
When I wore this to the Cardiff Vegan Festival last week, Salvatore (my husband) even commented on how different it was for me. 
Which of course I immediately said, "Different? Good different?", and then promptly wanted to go change. We were running late that day so I actually didn't have time to change, but I admit, I felt a little out of my comfort zone all day. Like  a little niggling feeling that i wasn't quite representing myself through my outfit. 
It's not that I hate the outfit, it's ok. But I think it just took me out of my comfort zone, which in turn means that perhaps in my mind I do actually have a defined style. Perhaps my subconscious knows more than I realise. And the style points go to the sub concious mind. 

As for the shirt.. well I'm not sure it's working for me. I'm just not loving it( I bought it a year ago now I think) and having tried it once again, I'm not sure whether to persevere or hand it on to a new home.

Have you ever dressed and felt outside your comfort zone? How did it make you feel that day?
















Outfit Details
Courdroy Skirt: F&F 
Cardigan & Bag: George, but last year
Boots
Shirt: Warehouse last year.


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Wednesday, 5 October 2016

Autumn Collection with Simply Be

Do you ever fall in to the trap of shopping in the same place season upon season? I do, and to be honest I will often feel despondent like they don't have what i'm looking for, or they're to expensive or its just all really samey.

Simply Be got in touch last week and asked if i would like to take a look through their new Autumn collection to see if there was anything that caught my eye.

Being a shop that I haven't previously shopped with I was a little unsure as to if I would find anything that was very me.

Well how wrong was I?

The answer is VERY.. very very wrong.

Simply Be is a brand that is known for offering a fantastic range of sizes (12 through to 32), but what I discovered is that some of the pieces start at a size 10, plus the accessories are on trend, reasonably priced and just really gorgeous! I was literally spoiled for choice

Everything above is Simply Be. Everything would work perfectly within an A/W capsule.

Let me walk you through my favourite, essential pieces for Autumn/Winter


Boots


The boot section offer a range of widths on many of the styles. I have the leopard print in my virtual cart, as I kid you not, I have been looking for a pair EXACTLY like this all week (I've been on a leopard print boot hunt, which to now was turning out to be severely unsuccessful!) I could not believe my luck when i found these in the  Ladies Boots section. With tights and socks (how i roll in winter) these could make the perfect addition to my capsule this winter.


 Gorgeous Accessories

After my success in the boot department I headed on over to the Accessories.
Autumn top priority for me is a bobble hat. I live in mine from autumn through to Spring. School run saviour (no need to do ones hair), dog walking and just sometimes outfit finisher' cos they're just damn cute. A hat is an essential for me and the bobble hats or pom pom hats are my top picks. Wear with a biker jacket, or a snuggly hoodie and you will look pretty and be super lovely and warm.
Secondly, BAGS. Oh how i love a nice bag. This embroidered bag is just sublime. Pretty and boho yet the monochrome keeps it modern. LOVE.


Shirts & Tops

These two would pretty much sit perfectly in my capsule.
Come autumn a checked shirt in a neutral colour way is my new favourite item. Wear causal with jeans, tucked in to a button down skirt or layered under a pinnafore style dress. Great remixable piece.
The paisley top has absolutely stolen my red loving heart. Not only is it my favourite colour but the detailing is just perfect. Paisley is my groove, I love how it never goes out of style and can be worn all year round. This pretty number would look so good with some faux leather trousers or some ripped jeans.


Coats
 

Military is big this season, with embellishment and buttoning. I love this sleek black coat, which is perfect for all occasions and has the little nod to the style with its button detail.
From the in-style to the quite simply sublime. This loop yarn jacket is unbelievably cool. Slightly yetti-ish, but that just makes me love it all the more. Again this would look so so good with some faux leather trousers and a black jumper and some burgundy pointed boots for a bit of a rock chic, edgy cool vibe. Also, it looks ridiculously warm, like hibernate for the winter in it, warm; I'm Sold!

These are all items I would gladly have in my capsule and know that they would be remixed and re-worn over and over again.

It goes to show, stepping out of your shopping comfort zone is definitely worth doing when there are great items like this to be found.

Do you shop at Simply Be?
What is your favourite item for Autumn?

Ps there is a 10% off code and Free delivery on all first orders, which i've just used to snap those leopard print boots up with. Use code YRKY4   at the checkout
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Tuesday, 4 October 2016

5 Cruelty Free & Vegan Deodorants Tried & Tested



Not a glamours topic I admit, but a vital part of every women's daily hygiene and cosmetics routine is of course a deodorant. When I first started on my Vegan, Cruelty Free journey one of the first things i switched over was my deodorant. Now, I'll be totally honest (and slightly gross) with you: I am quite a sweaty person. Yup, i just wanted to put that out there. I am generally a very sweaty person and perspire quite a lot. Always have, i'm sure i always will. So it goes without saying that a good deodorant is very important to me. I have tried SO many products over the years, but this time I'm trying out vegan, cruelty free and some all natural products to see if any of these will actually work on this sweaty Betty.
Glamours this may not be, but practical (and very honest!!) it is!


 So lets get started...

5 Vegan, Cruelty Free Deodrants:




1. Salt of the Earth Pure Aura natural Deodorant
Starting with one of the best, this deodorant is quite simply fantastic.
The spray application gives a liberal spritz, which can be quite wet at first, but does dry quite quickly. The scent of lavender and vanilla is strong and a nice presence without being over powering.
Durability of this deodorant is what I really liked. It works really, really well. I used this recently when i went on a huge zip wire and to say i was a little bit sweaty would be an understatement. Extreme sports will do that to you. But what a test to put this deodorant under. I left that day still feeling and smelling fresh.



At just £1.50 this carries the smallest price tag out of all the deodorizers and is in the roll on format that is fairly common.
Again, an absolute brilliant little product, it smells beautiful ( I actually went on to buy the matching body spray as well as they had a buy one get one half price, making them both a mere few pound!), but it also works tremendously well. I wore this through the hot days of summer and by the end of each day I would still be fairly fresh and not whiffy. 
The roll on applicator is great if you're in a hurry, it dries quickly and doesn't leave any white marks. The only downside is when left for a day or so, even with the lid on, the roller ball dries up and you have to shake it vigorously and rub it quite hard to activate the ball again. 
That being said, it doesn't put me off this product at all, it's a great little buy and I will definitely re purchase (perhaps in the water lillies scent to give that a go)


3. Jason Natural Lavender Deodorant Stick
The first day I wore this, in the height of summer, I was disappointed in its performance. By mid afternoon I no longer felt fresh and like it was working with me. Every body is different and for me it didn't protect me from sweating and smelling at all (delightful, i know.. Just be glad you weren't with me that day)
The smell of lavender is strong, which i like a lot as its a beautiful scent, but the product didn't seem to help me. I've worn it again since and it's been OK, but I don't think i would rely on it. If i have a shower at night time, I will pop some of this on and it seems to keep me fairly fresh when I'm not overly active. Plus the lavender scent is rather lovely.
The application is good. A firm deo-stick, making application easy and no white marks left.



 4. Crystal Stick Body Deodorant
If you've never used one of these before you will at first think it totally bizarre. How can a rock work as a deodorant? Well I'm not 100% sure on how, but I do know that it does!
To apply the Crystal rock you have to run it under a tap to dampen it, you then roll on your under arms as you would a roll on. Its completely smooth and easy enough to do after you've just taken a shower, but not so easy if like me, you often shower the night before. It means standing in the bathroom in your bra with wet armpits for a little bit, BUT it does work. It keeps any scent away for the day. If you are a heavy sweater (like me) then you will notice you may still get a little damp but no smell.
Plus this thing will last you years! I think I've had this over 6 years and it still works as well as they day I bought it. If you're in to minimalism, this would be a great buy.


5. Nature Love Natural Deodrant
I picked this up in TK Maxx as it was a new to me brand (It's an America brand) but liked the idea that it was an all natural deodorant. The scent is Lemongrass, which is not my personal favourite, but not too overpowering thankfully. The product again is a solid stick and is easy to apply. No white marks were left afterwards and it did last well through the day. The scent wore off fairly quickly but the effect still seemed to be there as I worked my way through the day. For an all natural product I would say this offers a real decent amount of protection, but the scent is just not for me (just personal preference)


So there we have it, some absolutely great discoveries for me! I will most certainly be making some re-purchases when the time comes.

What deodorant do you use? 
Would you consider switching to A Cruelty free Vegan variety?






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