Hello my lovelies,

It's so difficult trying to gauge the weather these days - will it be warm and sunny? Or will there be torrential rain to ruin my hair and soak through my ballet pumps? Too windy for a skirt? Too sticky for jeans? What is a girl to do??

This outfit is one way to solve the what-to-wear dilemma: the trousers from H&M are quite light and somewhat looser than jeans so I don't have to worry about them clinging to my legs if it heats up. Up top it's all about layering - I usually add a scarf when I leave the house in case the temperature drops, and the Topshop cardie is a lovely light material that won't leave me too chilly if it rains (which, inevitably, it did a few hours after these pictures were taken). I wore this to meander round  Chelmsford for a spot of Cafe Rouge lunch (I love the Croque Saumon) and a wee bit of shopping. I got suckered into buying the new No7 mascara at the till in Boots - review to follow!

Please excuse Henry Hoover crashing my pictures - I did point out later that he kind of matches my shoes!  I'm just relieved neither of the dogs made it into the photos, although they were both lurking looking cute (hence why I am looking down in the second photo!). I think they would make excellent bloggers if, you know, they could write. Or wore clothes.  Or posed when I asked them to.

Finally, make up for today! I used a smidgen of MAC Studio Fix fluid as it makes me look a bit more tanned (and heavens knows I need all the help I can get as there is no way I'll get a tan from the weather here!). I also loaded on the Benefit Bella Bamba and finished the look with a slick of Chanel Rouge Coco Shine in Chance - such a pretty girlie shade! I've been liking a bit of a smoky eye recently, using MAC Bare Study paintpot with Naked Buck in the crease and a bit of eyeliner; I think it makes my eyes look bigger!

Hello my lovelies,

I managed to find time to squeeze in a couple of photos this morning, thanks to lovely Jon and his camera skillz (I have to big him up otherwise he might stop taking them for me and I will finally have to fork out for that tripod). This is a good example of what I consider "smart" work dressing - arms and legs on show with everything else covered! I also threw a little white cardigan over the top of this as our office has a tendency to get a bit chilly despite the conspicuous lack of air-con. 

I've had my eye on this dress ever since it first appeared in Look magazine before spring had actually sprung, but after seeing it in-store I was reluctant to pay full price as it is quite a flimsy fabric. I'm also not 100% swayed by the cut as it gapes at the arms and perhaps I should have gone for a size down, but such is the nature of sale shopping, you're forced to take whatever size is on offer and in my view polka dots are always a winning print! Still the colour is gorgeous and summer and I got so many compliments today, Dorothy Perkins just cannot do any wrong in my eyes! They also had the lilac version of this dress in their online sale for about £17, but when I checked today to give you a link I can't find it anymore. Perhaps they'll still have them instore if anyone is interested? 

Apparently the lovely weather we've had today is leaving tomorrow, so I probably will be going back to jeans for warmth! I am still compiling my "smart workwear" post though as it's something I personally like to read about and hopefully this way we can all share ideas and inspiration. On that note may I direct you to Maria's blog as I love how she does smart clothing and quite often look to her for inspiration!

Hello my lovelies,

Skincare is something I rarely mention on the blog, primarily because it's such a difficult subject as everyone reacts differently to different products, but also because I have trouble finding products I would repurchase! I have tried a lot of products in my quest for better skin, including Liz Earle, Cetaphil, Naked, Avene, Soap &Glory, all of which were perfectly serviceable but didn't really have much of an effect (although I did enjoy the Soap & Glory Clarity face wash - have I been able to FIND it in a store since I used it up? Alas, no!).

So it was with some trepidation that I approached the Vichy range a couple of weeks ago. My sister uses it as she works part time in a chemist and has been singing the range's praises for some time, so when I spotted it on 3 for 2 at Boots I decide to take the plunge!

Vichy Normaderm Daily Exfoliating Cleanser Gel - £10.50
Vichy Normaderm Tri-Activ Anti-Imperfection Hydrating Care - £11.74

Vichy Purete Thermal One Step Cleanser - £11

I've been using the One Step Cleanser, the exfoliating gel, and the moisturiser for around two weeks now and my skin looks a thousand times better than it did. Spots are much rarer and disappear quite quickly, I no longer get those horrid painful lumpy spots that stay under the skin for ages, and best of all it doesn't irritate my sensitive skin in the slightest.

My usual evening routine is as follows:

Wash face with One Step Cleanser. This leaves my face feeling incredibly soft, but it does leave a slight feeling of residue. Which is why I then use Bioderma (usually the blue one for sensitive skin) with a cotton pad to wipe off any excess make up and also to remove my mascara (because Benefit They're Real does NOT go down without a fight).

Every couple of days I will use the exfoliating gel for a deep clean, it does not irritate the skin at all and it isn't abrasive! I then finish off with the moisturiser, which not only smells gorgeous but also sinks in quickly without leaving your face feeling greasy.

I also use the moisturiser in the mornings after washing my face with whatever face wash I am trying to use up, and it makes a decent base for make up, although I always use a primer as well. I have had a couple of bumps recently which I think are due to the facial tanning moisturiser I've been using, but I would definitely repurchase these Vichy products because of the massive difference they've made! For reference I have added photos below in which I am wearing under-eye concealer and a very light dusting of MAC MSF:

Scary close-ups but my skin doesn't look too bad! I'm super pleased with these products - have any of you tried Vichy before? Let me know your thoughts!

Hello my lovelies,

I thought I would do a quick post on the types of outfit I tend to wear to work. I think workwear is one of those terribly tricky topics - do you play it safe with monochrome suits, or can you pull off a more casual look? I'm quite lucky in that my workplace is rather relaxed in terms of what the staff can wear; obviously hotpants or mini skirts are frowned upon, but you can wear pretty much what you like, within reason! 

With this in mind I wanted to show you what I wear when I am in a casual mood. I must stress these moods are few and far between - so much so that when I turned up in jeans for the first time, several of my co-workers commented on the fact as they were so used to seeing me in skirts or dresses! I'd say on the whole I tend to dress smartly for work, but sometimes you just can't help the compulsion to wear jeans. So, this is how I "do" casual-wear:

 I do have a couple of rules I stick to when dressing casually...shoes and bag MUST match somewhat (in this case, the nude shade!). Jeans cannot be scruffy or drag along the ground. Absolutely no low-cut top or bingo-wing-revealing (you would be surprised how many clothes do this to me! I need to be buttoned up to the neck to avoid showing too much flesh - curse these curves!) And...breathe.

Hello my lovelies,

Back to work today! Really not impressed with the weather at the moment, it's so wet and cold and disgusting - what happened to our summer?? I've had to dig out the black opaques again to avoid freezing my legs off; I won't get a tan until my holiday in November at this rate...

I absolutely love this dress from Dorothy Perkins (obviously!). It was another one of those dresses I fell in love with in store, but totally missed out on buying it while it was available (I blame my student budget at the time!). Eventually I tracked it down on eBay in my size and I'm so glad I did, it's exactly my type of dress! High-necked, cinched waist and floaty skirt, not to mention the polka dot print! They also do it in a teal colour which I'm quite tempted by as it's not a colour I own already. I tend to stick to red-based colours; maybe time to step outside my comfort zone?

Hello my lovelies,

Hope you've all had a lovely Bank Holiday! I've really enjoyed the festivities over the last couple of days, it's really made me feel proud of our Britishness and our monarchy! It's even made me a teeny bit more excited for the Olympics (we live quite close to Stratford so I was dreading it a bit) because I have more faith in the UK's ability to pull it off now!

Anyway, to continue my Union Jack themed outfits...on Sunday my best friends and I headed down to Leeds Castle for a Jubilee screening of Grease (we aren't really sure why as it is the most American film EVER). Despite the driving rain we really had a blast with a picnic and scenes from the pageant playing on screen, all topped off with a fab fireworks show! Here are Geo and Steph putting on a brave face despite being absolutely freezing (also check out our mahoosive umbrella):

And here is my outfit for the day (mostly covered by a hoodie and coat!) The dress is H&M, the cardie is Dorothy Perkins, finished off with Primark pumps!

Yesterday we attempted the Jubilee fete at Hylands Park but in all honesty it was a bit of a disappointment! We ended up picnicking in the living room at home, watching Disney's Robin Hood followed by the Jubilee concert. So lovely to see everyone having a good time in honour of the Queen! As the Hylands Park thing was meant to be a vintage fete, I attempted a vintage look with curled hair and 50s make-up!

Hello my lovelies,

I hope you're all enjoying this Bank Holiday weekend, despite the grim skies! We have lots of stuff planned despite the rain, including a trip to Leeds Castle with my best girls, and hopefully a picnic tomorrow if the weather lets up! Of course I have planned my outfits to coordinate with the festive red, white and blue - no great feat, considering my wardrobe consists of these colours! 

Yesterday's outfit consisted of my new favourite navy and white T-shirt (Next) with an old favourite - the Primark red skirt! I wasn't expecting it to be so windy, so alas I had to pull on some opaque tights to prevent any embarrassing Marilyn moments.

Today's outfit will most likely be covered by a big hoodie at all times due to the fact it will be chilly and wet outside, but hopefully I'll manage to get some snaps for you! How are you celebrating the Jubilee?